


Fusion

by seren_ccd



Series: Fundamentals [4]
Category: Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-08
Updated: 2014-04-16
Packaged: 2018-01-18 15:25:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1433416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seren_ccd/pseuds/seren_ccd
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Things are beginning to come together.  Which makes Beth a big ole bundle of nerves and desires and she's not sure how to tell him any of this. She just settles on being matter-of-fact and hopes to God it works.  Beth/Daryl UST.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Once again, a HUGE 'Thank you' to everyone who has been following along with this little series.
> 
> This is (I think) the last in the series and therefore I'm not sure how long it's going to be. I'm thinking five to six chapters, but we'll see what happens. I've had a blast writing this and I have an AU plot bunny nipping at my heels that I may have to indulge (she's a baker, he's a bounty hunter and there are shenanigans and making-out on counters, we'll have to see!).
> 
> We're picking right where we left off with a shortish chapter and an abundance of some familiar faces. I hope you enjoy!

Beth shoves her knife up and yanks it out, making a face at the sound and the gore that spills out. The walker drops to the train tracks and she shakes the muck off her knife.

She glances over at Michonne who has already dispatched three walkers effortlessly and Rick and Daryl as they finish off the rest.

It's their third day camping out near the tracks and about a mile from Terminus. They were woken by the sound of walkers wandering up the tracks and quickly took care of them.

Beth counts ten bodies, one of them with one of her arrows in its head and frowns. "Wonder where they all came from?"

"Lord knows," Michonne says wiping her blade.

Beth pulls her arrow out of the body and frowns. The tip is blunt and the shaft is splitting.

"Gonna need some new ones, huh?" Daryl says behind her.

"Looks like," she says with a sigh. She looks at her crossbow which is slightly bent from being thrown hard to the ground the other night and frowns. "Not sure how much longer it's going to hold out."

Daryl takes it from her and looks it over. "Might get a few more uses out of it. I'll make some more arrows today."

"You made her arrows?" Carl asks from over by his dad. "Badass!"

Daryl snorts while Rick chuckles.

"I'll show you how, if you want," Daryl tells him. Carl grins and nods.

Daryl glances at Beth. "I'll get you some by the end of the day."

"Thanks," Beth says giving him a tired smile.

He smirks back. "What? You don't like killing walkers before breakfast?"

"Not really," she says sliding her knife back into its sheath. "Do you?"

"Love the smell of decay in the morning," he says. She frowns and he sighs while shaking his head. "Never watched Apocalypse Now?"

"Daddy wouldn't let me," she says. "Too violent."

He looks around at the bodies on the ground. "Yeah. Definitely too violent for you."

"Our camp's too out in the open," Michonne says walking over. "We need better cover."

"I agree," Rick says. He puts his hands on his hips. "I think we should push on to Terminus today."

In addition to getting some rest after the awful events of the night with those men, Daryl and Michonne had spent the last two days doing light reconnaissance of the area. They'd come back early each evening with more and more information on the layout of Terminus, but nothing further.

"The damn place is quiet," Daryl had said one night while they'd talked around a small campfire. "I hate to be the one using the cliché, but seriously, it's too quiet."

Michonne had agreed and all of Beth's instincts had started to ping and she hadn't even seen the place.

So to hear Rick say they should make a move made Beth frown and worry at her bottom lip.

"You sure, man?" Daryl asks, hefting his crossbow.

"Why?" Rick asks him. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm just thinking that the last time I was in a place that seemed inviting it wasn't exactly the friendliest place on earth and we got walkers thrown at us," he says. "And I'm also thinking that I don't want to take any chances. Especially not with a place we don't have any good information on."

"You want to sneak in, look around first?" Michonne suggests.

"Couldn't hurt," Daryl says shrugging.

Beth nods. "Things that look too good to be true just aren't these days."

Rick glances at her, surprised, but nods. "I hear you. Who's going and when?"

"I'll go," Daryl says quietly and chills go down Beth's spine, but she keeps quiet. "Tonight. Round midnight. It's been needing to be done. I'm not back after daybreak, head on."

"Like hell," Beth says, surprising everyone including herself. "You're not back by daybreak, I'm going after you."

Daryl looks confused and frowns. He looks ready to say something, but Michonne says, "I'll come along. Two sets of eyes are better than one." She glances at Beth and gives her a small smile. "I'll keep him out of trouble for you."

Beth smiles back and when she glances at Daryl, he still looks confused.

Get used to it, buddy, she thinks. We're looking out for each other now.

"Better rest up, then," Rick tells them. "We'll do the heavy-lifting today."

The rest of the day is quiet, Carl checks his snares and Beth and he practice skinning and preparing the meat. Daryl, Michonne, and Rick discuss the best way to search Terminus while Daryl sharpens some arrows for Beth.

"Since it looks like a big factory or depot of some sort, I bet there's few ways in," Daryl says drawing a crude diagram in the dirt with one of the arrows. "We go in the back, stay quiet and see what's what."

"If it's bad?" Rick asks.

"We hightail it back here and hit the road," Daryl says flatly. "Winter's on its way and I don't think anyone wants to be on the road when it hits." He looks around. "Fall's coming on faster than usual and that usually means winter's gonna suck."

Rick nods. "You're right. We're going to need a place to hole up in and soon."

Before Beth's ready, night is falling and Daryl and Michonne are ready to head out. Beth wraps her arms around her waist and watches Daryl get his crossbow ready.

He pauses, then looks up at her. "I'm not back, you follow Rick; you hear me?"

"I hear you," she says nodding. "I'm also going to ignore you."

"No," he says standing and putting a hand on her waist. "I don't come back, you get. Don't come looking for me."

"How on earth can you say that?" she asks, frustrated. "You honestly think I'm going to leave you if you're caught or hurt or whatever?"

"I think you should do as I say," he says, something like a growl coming through.

"Well, I'm clearly entering into a rebellious phase, because I'm not going anywhere without you," she says firmly. "Get used to it, Dixon."

"Woman," he says, looking down and trying to sound stern, but he just sounds confused. Beth understands, though. What this is – whatever they are, it's new to her, too. It feels deeper and stronger than anything she's ever felt for another person before. They haven't kissed since the other morning but she can't stop thinking about it. She also doesn't want to be the one to start things because she doesn't want to rush him. So, she's basically a big ole bundle of nerves and desires and she's not sure how to tell him any of this. She just settles on being matter-of-fact and hopes to God it helps.

"Look, you're going to have to get used to the fact that I'm going to worry about you and that we're in this together," she says, trying to smile and reassure him. "It's a lot and I'm sorry, but that's how it is."

His hand flexes on her waist and he still looks bewildered by her. She tips her head to meet his eyes and steps in close to him.

"Don't go borrowing trouble, Daryl," she says. "Be safe. Go in. Look around. Then come back to me. That's all you've got to do."

He raises his head and stares at her. "Just like that, huh?"

"Just like that," she says with a lightness she most certainly does not feel. "Easy as pie."

"Right," he mutters. He presses his forehead to hers and she wants to kiss him so bad. She wants to pull him down to the ground and do all sorts of things to him. She wants to feel every inch of his skin press on hers and she wants him to not be the one who goes exploring the unknown, but then knows that's precisely why she's all caught up in him; it's who he just is.

So she just lifts her lips and presses a quick kiss on his mouth and says, "Go. Stick to the plan. Be safe. Go in. Look around and come back to me. Those are the only things you've got to do."

"Got it," he says roughly. His hand grips her waist so tight she wonders if it'll bruise. Then he's off into the woods, Michonne beside him, and they disappear silently between the dark trees.

Beth sucks in a shuddery, uneven breath and Carl comes to stand beside her. She takes his hand on impulse and he freezes, then relaxes and squeezes her hand tightly. Rick stands just behind them and they all gaze into the woods.

A few hours have gone by and Beth sits with her back against a pine tree, the sound of Carl breathing deep as he sleeps nearby helps to ease her nerves somewhat. Eventually, she hears Rick sit up and walk softly over to sit down beside her.

"Can't sleep?" she asks not taking her eyes off the woods.

"Not really," he says. "Didn't expect to. Not with them out there."

Beth nods and keeps her eyes trained on the dark woods in front of her.

"He'll come back," he says gently. "He always seems to."

"I know," she says. "He'll keep coming back until the day that he doesn't and I'll have to go after him."

Rick doesn't say anything and Beth starts to feel uncomfortable. He hasn't said anything about Beth and Daryl being whatever it is they are but she knows that one word from Rick to Daryl about her and well, Daryl would probably listen.

She doesn't have the faintest idea how to even bring the topic up, so she stays quiet.

It pays off because Rick eventually says, "So, you and Daryl, huh? You're together?"

"Something like that," she says. She shifts on the ground. "We just got…close, you know."

"Oh, I know," Rick says chuckling and Beth remembers him walking up on Beth and Daryl kissing and she blushes and chuckles herself.

"Sorry about that," she says.

"It's okay," he says. "And I'm glad, you know. That you two have each other."

"You aren't going to-" She breaks off and looks into the woods.

"Going to what, Beth?" he says quietly. "Look down on y'all? Bring up reasons why you shouldn't be together? No, honey, I'm not." He sighs. "At the moment, I am the last man who should even think of passing judgment on another person."

The image of him tearing into that man's neck flashes behind her eyes and she has to work hard to suppress the shudder.

"Good point," she mutters.

Rick laughs softly. "I'm not your dad and even if I was, I couldn't think of anyone else I'd rather have on your side than Daryl Dixon. Just…go easy on him. I don't think life's been all that good to him."

"I'm trying," she says. "It's not like I've got all that much experience in the matter of relationships, myself."

"Yeah, but loving someone and seeing the good in them comes a lot easier to you than other people," he says.

"I suppose," she says. "Although, it's getting harder and harder to find the good these days."

"Yeah," he says rubbing at his beard. "Noticed that myself."

She pauses then says, "I don't think Daddy would have minded me and Daryl, do you?"

She can feel Rick looking at her and wonders if it would be pity she'd see in his eyes; so she doesn't look.

"I think," he says slowly. "That your father would have been all right with you and Daryl. After he'd threatened Daryl very nicely and politely with a rifle."

Beth can't hold back the giggles and covers her mouth. "Sounds like Daddy."

"He loved you girls something fierce," Rick says. He sighs. "Beth, I'm so sorry that I couldn't-"

"Don't. I've already had this talk with Daryl about not being able to control other people's bad actions," Beth says lightly, even though she feels the tears building up in her throat. "Don't tell me I've got to have it with you, too?"

"Not if you don't want to," he says, and she thinks there's some amusement in his voice and so she looks over at him. He gives her a rueful smile and Beth smiles back.

"We're good, Rick Grimes," she says.

"I'm glad, Beth Greene," he says. Then he frowns. "Do you smell that?"

She turns her head to look towards Terminus and thinks she sees an orange glow in the distance. "Is that smoke?" she asks.

They hear twigs snapping sharply and Rick reaches over and shakes Carl awake.

"Get your stuff," Rick says to them both and Beth grabs her pack and gets her crossbow ready. Carl's blinking his eyes furiously as he wakes.

They stand in a huddle, Rick and Carl with their guns out, Beth with her crossbow.

The snapping gets louder and it sounds like a whole bunch of things are heading their way, but it sounds more coordinated and faster than walkers. Beth takes aim when she sees a figures emerging.

"Don't shoot!" she thinks she hears as a large man with red hair come running their way. "Daryl says don't shoot!"

"What?" Rick yells, lowering his gun slightly. "Who are you?"

"Friends of Glenn's! Run!" the man yells as he flies past them, a man with a mullet hot on his heels and a young woman with a hat and pigtails right behind them.

"You heard him!" the girl yells at Beth as she sprints past. "Run!"

"Dad?" Carl says edging closer to Beth and Rick, his hands adjusting and readjusting on his gun.

Rick just frowns and then spots someone and shouts, "Glenn?"

Beth's heart is in her throat when she sees her brother-in-law emerge from the woods supporting a young woman with dark hair in between him and…

"Maggie!" Beth yells, lowering her crossbow.

Maggie raises her head and smiles that big bright smile that Beth has known all her life. "Beth!"

Then her arms are around Beth and she's hugging her sister and oh, God, she smells the same and it's Maggie and Beth's grinning at her so hard it hurts but—

"Where's Daryl?" she asks pulling back when Maggie starts to pull her along.

Glenn shouts at her. "Behind us! Rick, let's go!"

"Michonne!" Carl yells into the woods.

"Coming!" Michonne's voice cuts through the crashing of feet through the leaves.

There's a sharp burst of gunfire not too far off and Beth jumps.

"Beth, we gotta go!" Maggie says, pulling her.

"No!" Beth yells. "Not without Daryl!"

She catches a glimpse of Maggie looking confused, but Beth looks to Rick, who hasn't moved. He nods at her and stays where he is.

Michonne comes running up and yells at Beth, "He's behind me! Come on!"

"Not 'til I see him!" Beth yells back.

"Bethy!" Maggie pulls on her arm again. Rick looks like he's wavering and shifts backwards.

Another burst of gunshots ring out and more people emerge from the woods. She spots Bob and Sasha and it looks like Sasha's hanging onto Tyreese who's holding something that's letting out a godawful wail and…is that-?

"Judith!" Carl yells running up to Tyreese.

"Oh, God." Rick sounds utterly shaken and he runs over to his daughter.

Beth's head is spinning and she knows all these faces and she can't believe they're all here and the gunshots sound closer than ever and Maggie's fingers are digging into her arm, but she hasn't seen him yet and how can she leave him and then-

"Go!" His voice cuts through her whirling thoughts and she sees him. He's got a cut on his head and is that Carol beside him?

"Daryl!" Beth shouts suddenly sure that all of this is all his doing and she's elated and confused and therefore can't help shouting, "What the hell did you do?"

"Set a fire and played big damn heroes," he yells back. "And I blame you, Greene!" He spots Maggie tugging on Beth's arm. "Hug her later! Move your asses, now!"

They move their asses.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you so much to all of you for reading and sticking with this series. I can’t tell you how much that means!

They run.

They run until dawn is breaking on the horizon and the gunshots have stopped.  They cross over the highway at one point and keep running until they reach another country road.  Then they cut across a field and head towards a large rundown farmhouse with a sagging roof.  They run and take shelter behind the house, Daryl and Rick checking behind them.

Beth stops running and rubs at a stitch in her side.  She doesn’t get to breathe easy for long because Maggie is there, hugging her tight.

Beth hugs her back, squeezes her sister so tightly until they both groan and laugh.  Maggie pulls back and shakes her head.

“I didn’t…  Oh, Lord, Beth, you’re alive!”

The disbelief in her voice stings Beth a bit, deep inside; but she pushes it down and just nods.  “Daryl and I got out.  We met up with Rick and Michonne just a few days back.”

Maggie looks over at Daryl, who’s looking at the two of them.

“Thank you,” she says to him, holding Beth’s hand.

Daryl shakes his head.  “She held her own.  Took care of me more’n I took care of her.”

Beth grins at him and he just smirks back.  “So much for sticking to the plan,” she says to him.

“Yeah,” he says, shrugging.  “Couldn’t leave ‘em there, though, could I?”

“No,” she says gripping Maggie’s hand.  “No, you couldn’t.”

Maggie looks between them and frowns a little.

“You cut your hair?” she says, running a hand over Beth’s shorter ponytail.

“Just a little,” Beth says, uncomfortably, feeling self-conscious.  “It was getting long.”  She shakes off the odd feeling that’s come over her and says, “But, what happened?  Were you all at Terminus?”

There’s a sharp wail from Judith and Beth looks over to see Carol handing Rick a bottle.

“They let us keep some formula for her,” she’s telling Rick who’s rocking Judith and now feeding her.  “Don’t know what they were thinking they’d do with her when they were done with us.”

“What were they going to do with you?” Carl asks, running his finger alongside the bottom of Judith’s foot.

“Eat us,” Glenn says flatly.

Beth jerks and looks at him.  “They what?”

“They were cannibals,” Sasha says quietly, Tyreese’s arm around her shoulders as she hugs his mid-section.

Beth glances at Daryl and he nods.  “They ain’t lying,” he says.  “They had all sorts of bones, looked like an abattoir up in there.”

“Start from the beginning,” Rick says glancing at Daryl and Michonne.  He eyes the three people standing off to the side that Beth doesn’t know.  “Including your new friends.”

Beth listens to everyone’s story while holding on to her sister.  Her head spins at all of the different tales that have somehow merged together.

Carol met up with Tyreese and the girls and Beth’s heart breaks a little to hear of poor Lizzie and Mika dying.  She notices a look shared between Carol and Tyreese and wonders how much they’re not telling, but knows she’s not going to ask.

Internally, she’s not sure how she feels about what Carol did back at the prison, but the image of shoving her own arrow into the head of a living man flashes and well…she understands.  It’s the lesson everyone’s learning, isn’t it?  You do what you have to when you think that you have to.

Maggie, Bob, and Sasha travelled together until they merged with Glenn and Tara, the dark-haired girl whose knee looks all banged up.  Beth recognizes her from the group that was with the Governor, but Glenn vouches for her when Rick arches an eyebrow.

“We met up with Eugene, Abraham, and Rosita, over there,” Glenn says gesturing at the three new people.

“Sergeant Abraham Ford,” the large red-headed man says to Rick.  “I’d shake your hand, but you look a little busy there.”

Rick nods to him and shifts Judith in his arms.  “Rick Grimes.”  He nods at Beth.  “That’s Beth, and I think you met Daryl and Michonne last night.”

He nods at Daryl and Michonne.  “Sure did.  Brief, but it sure made an impression.”  He glances at Beth and smiles.  “Ma’am.”

Beth nods back and notices Daryl shift on his feet and glare a little at the other man.

“They’re on their way to Washington,” Glenn says, leaning against the wall of the farmhouse.  “Eugene there has the cure to the virus.”

The group goes silent as they all stare at the man with the mullet; the only sound is Judith sucking furiously on her bottle.

“Is that right?” Daryl eventually says, disbelief heavy in his voice.

“It is,” Eugene says nodding.  “I know how to fix it.”

Beth blinks and looks over at Daryl who look back at her and shrugs his shoulders.

“All right, then,” he says.  He looks over at Rick, who is staring at Eugene with a carefully controlled look on his face.

“So…what’s up with the cannibals?” Carl asks.

* * *

 

The very, early morning sun is pale in the sky when they decide to leave the farmhouse.  Everyone splits a couple of cans of food from Beth and the others’ packs, but they want to get some distance between themselves and Terminus.

“Let’s check that map of yours,” Rick says to Daryl.  Rick still has Judith in his arms as she dozes and Carl’s right beside him.

Beth offers her back to Daryl and he digs into her backpack that she’s still wearing, for the map.  As she turns, she notices an odd look on Maggie’s face, but then everyone’s crowding around the map to see where they are. 

“I’m thinking we’re about here,” Daryl says pointing to a spot near a county road.  “A decent-sized town’s about a day and a bit walk away.”  He looks up at Rick.  “It’s northeast and won’t take them too far out of their way.”

“Appreciate the consideration,” Abraham says amiably.  “Be nice to get some weapons and some transport.”

“Northeast, it is, then,” Rick says nodding.

Daryl folds up the map and puts it back into Beth’s pack.

Then they start to walk.  As they go, Glenn tells them about Terminus.

“We walk in and they just handed us a plate of food,” he says grimly, walking beside Maggie and Beth.  “And we ate it.  God knows what it was.”

“Or who,” Bob says grimacing.

“Christ,” Daryl says from where he’s walking towards the rear of the group, Carol and Tyreese walking next to him.

“Then they locked us up into these train cars,” Sasha continues.  She glances at her brother and smiles.  “Can’t believe that’s how we met up.  In some freakin’ train car.”

“Strange world we’re living in, little sister,” Tyreese says, smiling.

“Anyway, there we are,” Glenn says.  “Wondering who they’re going to take when the time comes.  Eyeing each other up to see who looks the tastiest.”

“Oh, my God, Glenn,” Beth says looking at Glenn while Maggie punches his arm.

“What?” he says chuckling.  “We’re out, I can laugh about it now.  I mean, Soylent Green was going to be us!”

Daryl snickers and even Michonne cracks a small grin.

“So, we’re stuck in these train cars and then door opens and this familiar redneck voice says, ‘What the hell are y’all dumbasses waitin’ on?  Get the hell outta there!’” Glenn says, imitating Daryl.

“This is after someone set the some of the place on fire,” Michonne says looking back at Beth.  “I think he may have been inspired.”

Beth looks back at Daryl and he smirks at her, saying, “What?  I’m setting all sorts of unsuspecting structures on fire these days. You’re a bad influence on me, Greene.”

“Oh, cry me a river, Dixon,” she says grinning.  “I’m an exceptional influence on you.”  She turns to Glenn.  “Then what happened?”

“We got the hell outta there,” Glenn says.  He furrows his brow.  “Think they may come after us?”

The idea of another group of people chasing after her people makes Beth frown.

“Doubt it,” Daryl says.  “They looked well set-up, they ain’t just going to abandon their place ‘cause their dinner ran off on them.”   

“Jesus, man,” Tyreese says shaking his head.  “Go easy on us.”

Rick’s finished feeding Judith and Carol steps forward to help him with her.  There’s a moment when the two look at each other.  Beth watches Carol give Rick a small nod and Rick gives one back.

“Beth can take Judith,” Carl says, smiling a little at Beth.  “You know, like you used to.”

Beth blinks and then nods.  “Of course I can.  If you want?”

Rick glances at her and then asks, “You sure?”

“She’s sure,” Carl says firmly taking Judith from Rick and walking back to Beth.  “Judith likes being with Beth.”

There’s a second, a sharp, harsh second, right before Beth takes Judith where something rebels inside of her.  A desperate voice shouts ‘This isn’t all I am now!  I’m not just a baby-sitter!  I’m more than I was!’

But then Judith is in her arms, heavier than she used to be, but she’s smiling up at Beth and Beth’s smiling back and the thought fades away.

“Hey, there, sweetpea,” Beth whispers.  Judith gives a little cry and a wiggle and waves her arms.  Beth laughs.  “Oh, I missed you, baby girl.”

Carl’s smiling at them both and turns to look at Rick, who looks relieved and as though a huge weight has lifted off his chest.

Beth adjusts her hold on Judith and feels Daryl come up behind her.  He reaches around and tugs on Judith’s foot.

“Hey, there, li’l ass-kicker,” he says, his hand resting on Beth’s shoulder as he talks to Judith.  “Glad to see you’re still being a badass and taking names.”

Judith gives happy cry and tangles a little hand in a lock of Beth’s hair.

“I fixed up a carrier for her,” Tyreese says coming up to them, a backpack in his hands.  “Let’s see if we can get it on you.”

* * *

 

A few hours later, they’re still walking in small groups along a badly paved country road.  Rick is walking with Glenn, Maggie, Sasha, and Abraham up front, followed by Eugene on his own, then Michonne and Carl, who keeps looking back at Beth and Judith, who is right behind them.

Beth is walking with Judith situated in the carrier that Tyreese rigged up so that Judith rests on Beth’s front facing her.

Daryl is right behind Beth; Carol and Tyreese on either side of him, Bob and Tara taking up the back.

Beth can feel Daryl watching her as she hums Judith to sleep.  The little girl is a familiar weight in her arms and she really did miss her, so very bad.  More than she’d let herself admit, so to have her back feels like some kind of miracle that she doesn’t dare test in any way.  Carl looks better at any rate.  More hopeful than he has in days and Beth can’t and won’t ignore that.   

Rosita is walking next to her and she glances over at Judith.

“She’s cute,” she says.

“She is,” Beth says smiling down at Judith.  “She’s bright, too.”

“Can’t imagine having one right now, though,” Rosita says shaking her head.  “How’d you manage it?”

“Oh, she’s not mine,” Beth says.  “Her mama, well…”

Rosita nods.  “Gotcha.  That sucks.  Poor little thing.”

“She’s still got her daddy and her big brother, though,” Beth says and Carl turns around at that and grins at Beth, who smiles back.  Carl turns back around.  Michonne grins at him.

“So, are you her aunt or something?” Rosita asks.

“No, just a friend of the family,” Beth says, jiggling Judith a little.

They walk along in silence for a bit longer. The day’s turned out warmer than previously and the carrier’s hot on Beth’s shoulders, sweat slips down her spine and she wipes the back of her hand across her brow. 

“God,” Rosita says eventually, sounding angry.  “Cannibals.  I still can’t get my head around that.  I mean, what the hell is wrong with people?”

“Beats the heck outta me,” Beth says shaking her head.  She makes a face.  “It’s not like it’s all that great of an idea anyway.  From a biological standpoint.  I mean, you wouldn’t do that to farm animals.”

“Really?” Rosita asks.

“Yeah, there was that disease that went around England a while back,” Beth says.  “Farmers fed ground up cows to other cows and it did something to their brains and they ended up having to kill big herds or something.”

“Seriously?” Carl asks turning to look Beth.

“Mad cow disease,” Eugene says loudly.  “Creutzfeldt-Jakob’s disease, also known as CJD.  Odd proteins called prions infected the cow’s brains and turned them into sponge.  They went insane.”  He turns and looks at Beth while walking backwards.  “I’m surprised you know about it.”

Beth blinks at him and says, “Well, I grew up on a farm.  My daddy kept an eye on news like that. Just in case.”

Eugene nods.  “Makes sense.  You’re very pretty, by the way.”

“Thank you?” Beth says, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

He nods and turns back around.

“He does that,” Rosita says under her breath.  “You get used to it.  Sort of.”

“Okay?” Beth frowns, really not sure what to think of their new companions.

She hears a snort behind her and she glances back to see Daryl smirking at her.

“What?” she mouths at him.

“Pretty,” he mouths back.

She narrows her eyes at him and then mouths, “Shut up.”

As she turns around, she catches Carol looking between Beth and Daryl with a fond smile on her face.  Beth smiles back at her and Carol speeds up a little to walk beside her.

“It’s good to see you, Beth,” she says, smoothing a finger on Judith’s cheek.

“It’s good to see you, too,” Beth says quietly.  “I’m glad you’re all right.”

Carol nods.  “Mostly all right.  You look good.  Stronger.”

“You do, too,” Beth says and she means it.  There’s a deep sadness there, in Carol’s eyes, but there’s something else.  Something like acceptance.  Acceptance of what, Beth has no idea.  She isn’t sure she wants to know, because she wonders if that look will eventually seep into her own eyes.

She looks down at Judith, who blinks up at her sleepily, and thinks, _The things we have to do now.  Lord, I hope you don’t have to do them, too, Judith-girl._

“Daryl looks good, too,” Carol says glancing back, a small smile on her face.

Beth glances at her, surprised.  The look Carol’s giving her is one like they share some kind of secret and Beth has to smile back.

“Daryl always looks good,” Beth says casually.

Carol laughs and Beth giggles along, as they both look back at Daryl, who just eyes them suspiciously.

“Don’t think I approve,” he says slowly, “of whatever it is y’all two are thinking.”

“Oh, I bet you do,” Carol says grinning at him.  Beth giggles again and knows that if anyone in the group is going to say anything about whatever it is that she and Daryl have, it’s not going to be Carol.

She turns back around in time to see Maggie glancing back at her with that same puzzled look on her face from before.

_Oh, heck_ , Beth thinks, somewhat resigned.  _Going to have to talk to her some time.  That’s going to be fun._

The reluctance to talk to her sister takes her by surprise and she immediately pushes it from her mind. 

* * *

They eventually come across a plant nursery on the edge of the highway and as dark is coming on, they go inside the greenhouse next to the small store.  Beth can smell the sweet scent of Confederate jasmine that’s growing wild along a fallen down fence.  Rows of plants have spread and entwined with each other and Beth wonders if there are any vegetables still on the vines.  Sasha and Carol must have the same thought because they head over to look the plants over, Bob close by.

A lone walker is stumbling about the entrance to the greenhouse, but a bolt from Daryl’s crossbow has him collapsing on the ground.

As Daryl yanks the bolt out of the walker, Rick and Glenn edge up to the door to check the place out.  Maggie’s close behind them, Beth having loaned her crossbow to her sister, warning her about the pull up and to the right.

Tyreese stays close to Beth and Judith and Beth gives him a grateful look.

“Have you had a rough time of it?” he asks her, his voice low.

“Some parts were rough,” Beth says quietly, thinking of those men and that night and what they all had to do. 

“Yeah,” he says nodding his head.  “Same here.  Some parts.”

“It’s clear,” Rick calls out and everyone goes inside.  Daryl and Abraham go into the store to see if anything’s been left.  Daryl catches Beth’s eye after he lets Abraham go inside first.  She raises her eyebrows at him and he rolls his eyes.  She stifles a giggle and then goes into the greenhouse. 

The air inside is humid and there’s a barrel of rainwater situated in the back that everyone takes turns splashing onto their faces.  A fountain with small mold-covered cherubs lies stagnant in the middle and everyone avoids it.  Most of the plants have died due to lack of water, but some are overgrowing their pots. 

Carol and Sasha manage to find some bell peppers and tomatoes that don’t look too overripe while Carl and Michonne get all the cans from their packs out.

“Found a Coke machine,” Abraham says as he and Daryl come into the greenhouse each carrying an armful of cans.

Beth sits Judith on the ground on a shirt that Carl’s given her.  She hears a short whistle and looks up.  Daryl tosses her a can of Sprite and she catches it with a smile.

Everyone’s exhausted from running most of the night and into the day, so dinner is quiet.

“We still aim to head towards DC,” Abraham says after drinking an entire can of Dr. Pepper in one long series of gulps.  “We’d sure be grateful for the company.”

Beth glances at Daryl who’s looking to Rick, who’s looking down at his daughter and son as they play some kind of game involving Carl wiggling his fingers above Judith’s waving hands.

Rick eventually looks up and nods.  He looks at Daryl who shrugs.

“Northeast is all right,” he says.  “We’ll hit the Nantahala forest though and I don’t know that we want to do that when winter’s on our asses.”

Rick looks to Abraham.  “I’m not saying ‘no’.  But, let me sleep on it.  Let the others sleep on it before we decide.”

“That’s fair, man,” Abraham says spreading his hands out.  “Let me know if y’all want to help save the world.”

Beth isn’t sure what she thinks of that, but the look on Daryl’s face is priceless and she has to look away so that she doesn’t start laughing.

Carol helps Beth get Judith situated and soon the little girl’s asleep beside Rick and Carl.  Rick keeps looking at her as though he expects her to just disappear and Carl falls asleep with his hand beside Judith’s foot.  Michonne curls up nearby and Maggie and Glenn curl up together.

Maggie smiles at Beth and holds out her hand.  “Stay close?” she asks her.

Beth nods.  “I will.  I’ll be right there.”

She gets up after tugging on Maggie’s hair a little, which makes her sister smile.  Glenn winks at her from where he’s spooned up behind Maggie and Beth winks back.

Then she goes outside to where Daryl’s walking the perimeter.

“You should get some sleep,” she says to him as she leans against the greenhouse wall.  “You were up all night being a hero.”

He scoffs and leans against the wall beside her, his arm resting beside hers.  She edges over so that their hands line up together, and he’s the one that takes her hand.

“Sorry I didn’t stick to the plan,” he says, voice going low.

“I forgive you,” she says smiling.  “This time.”

“Glad to see Maggie?”

“Yes, of course!” Beth hesitates.  “I don’t know.  I’m so happy to see everyone and God, Judith, I’d thought…” 

She stops talking and looks up at the sky.  It’s a clear night and she can almost make out the Milky Way.

“I’m happy,” she says again.  She looks at him.  “Are you?”

“Yeah, I’m happy,” he says, surprised.  “Just…I don’t know.”

“Yeah.”  She sighs. “It feels kinda…”

“Loud?”

“Crowded.”

“Got used to being on our own,” he says.  He shuffles his feet and looks almost embarrassed to have admitted it.

“I almost miss that treehouse,” Beth says.  “Which is a terrible thing to say.  Because none of our family was there and we didn’t know if they were alive or not.”

“Ain’t terrible,” he says shaking his head.  “It was a good treehouse.”

“Could’ve holed up there,” she says. 

“I offered.”

“I know.”

They stare up at the sky and slowly, where their hands are joined, he starts to rub his index finger across her knuckle.  It’s the smallest touch, but it makes Beth shiver and ache deep, deep inside.

“You okay?” he asks, his voice so quiet she can barely hear him.

“You’re here,” she says, just as quietly.  “I’m okay.”

She looks at him and he tilts his head, just slightly, towards her and a shuffling of feet behind Beth makes her jump.

Tyreese holds up his hands and says, “Sorry, just thought I’d take first watch.  I probably got more sleep than you did last night, man.”

Daryl squeezes Beth’s hand and then let’s go, saying “Thanks. I’m good to stay up for a little while longer.”

“I’ll join you, then,” Tyreese says.

Beth curls her hand into her palm and smiles at them both.  “Well, if you two gentlemen are going to be our guards for the evening, I’m going to get some sleep.”

Tyreese grins at her and Daryl nods.

“Sleep well,” he mutters as Beth heads inside. 

When she rounds the door, she hears Tyreese ask softly, “I interrupt something?”

Beth pauses just inside the doorway to hear Daryl’s answer and grins when she hears, “Kinda, yeah.”

She curls up near Maggie with a smile on her face.

* * *

Judith is fussy the next morning and Carol says she’s been teething lately.  Beth walks her around the greenhouse and it seems to help.  But the second she stops walking, Judith starts up again.  Beth offers her thumb to Judith and she grabs hold and gums at it.

“Maybe we should stay the night,” Carl says, walking beside Beth and Judith. 

“Looks like there’s a one-horse town a mile or two that way,” Bob says from where some of them are consulting the map again.  He eyes Judith.  “Don’t know that we want to walk with her all unhappy like that.”

“No telling what it might attract,” Sasha says quietly, coming over and rubbing her hand on Judith’s back.  She gives Beth a sympathetic look and Beth nods at her.

“I agree,” Carol says.  “She’s been doing this off and on and if she has a day to just yell her way through it, she tends to be better the next day.”

“Tara should probably rest her knee some more after all that running,” Maggie says.

“I’m fine,” Tara says looking embarrassed when everyone looks at her.  “I can walk if I have to.”

“No, no, all right,” Rick says.  “Some of us go over to that town, see what we can bring back.  Carl, you go set some snares near the woods over that way, see if you can catch us some supper.  We’ll lay low tonight, then head out first thing.”

Everyone nods and Beth’s not all that bothered or surprised that Rick seems to have just fallen back into being a leader.

_We all have jobs to do_ , she thinks, remembering her words from months ago.  She looks down at Judith.  _This is mine.  And that’s okay. I think._

Most of the men head out in the direction of the town; Glenn, Bob, and Carl stay behind.  Sasha heads out with them as she knows what Judith might need and because she and Tyreese don’t seem to want to let each other out of their sight.

Daryl comes over to her before they go and says, “You okay?”

“I’m okay,” she says nodding.  “Stick to the plan this time, though, won’t you?”

“No promises, Greene,” he says, rubbing Judith’s back and giving Beth a tiny smirk.  “But, I’ll come back.” 

Then they’re out the door.  Beth stands and watches them head down the road, her eyes on the angel wings on his vest until he’s just a dark speck on the horizon.  They crest a small hill and disappear from sight.

She takes a deep breath and jiggling Judith, Beth turns around.  She comes almost face to face with her sister who has her jaw set and is staring at Beth with that odd look on her face that Beth’s coming to really dislike.

“What?” Beth asks, adjusting her hold on Judith.

“What is going on with you and Daryl Dixon?” Maggie asks flatly.

_Oh, crap_ , Beth thinks, her mood sinking.  _Here we go._


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Okay, not going to lie – this was one of my favorite chapters to write. I love letting the ladies talk!
> 
> Thank you so much for all your reviews and comments! I hope you enjoy!

“What is going on between you and Daryl Dixon?” Maggie asks.

Beth stares at her sister and then says, “We got out together.  We stayed together.  He taught me how to track and how to hunt.  We’re…together.  I don’t know how else to put it.”

“Together?” Maggie repeats.  She frowns.  “Is that a good idea?”

“How is that _not_ a good idea?” Beth asks, walking over to set Judith down on the ground by Michonne and Carol.

Maggie follows and Beth cringes internally.  Everyone’s watching them, although they’re trying to act like they aren’t.  A part from Carl, that is.  He’s paused by the door and is just flat out staring at them.

Beth gives him a look and says, “I thought you were supposed to be setting snares?”

“Yeah, but this looks a lot more interesting,” he says.

Beth glares and Michonne gets to her feet.  “Out,” she says to Carl.  “I’m sure someone will fill us in later.”

Carl rolls his eyes and walks out of the greenhouse, Michonne following.  She turns to Beth and mouths, “Good luck.”  Beth makes a face at her.

Carol hands Beth a wet rag for Judith and says, “She might like to gnaw on this for a while.”

Beth sits with Judith on her lap and offers the rag to the little girl.  She gnaws for a few minutes, then makes a face and pushes it away with a whimper.  Beth sighs.

“We’re still talking, Beth,” Maggie says firmly.

“I know,” Beth says.  “But, I don’t know what you want me to say.  Daryl and I got close.  We’re something now.  That’s kind of it.”

“Something?  Together?” Maggie repeats.  “Beth, if you can’t even be specific about what y’all are, isn’t that a sign?”

“A sign of what?” Beth asks looking up at her sister.

“That maybe it’s not as important to him as it is to you,” Maggie says.

Beth goes cold.  Carol closes her eyes and shakes her head and Beth thinks she hears Glenn mutter, “Oh, crap.”

Calmly, Beth hands Judith over to Carol and then gets to her feet to face her sister.  She’s hyper aware that everyone has given up on any kind of pretense and they’re all watching.  Rosita and Tara in one corner, Bob and Glenn over by the door, Carol on the floor with Judith.

Beth looks Maggie in the eye and asks, “Why would you say something like that?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Maggie says.  “Beth, you’re so young and he’s not and you have no idea what he might want out of this and it’s entirely possible it’s not as serious as you think it is.”

Beth’ll give her credit, Maggie looks sad and her voice is kind as she’s talking, so she’s not deliberately trying to hurt her.  Beth’ll give her that.  Maggie’s still wrong, but Beth knows she’s not trying to be cruel. 

Doesn’t stop what she’s saying from cutting like a knife in her belly.

“You’re right,” Beth says, trying to stay calm.  “I don’t know how serious he is about this, but I know him well enough to know that it’s pretty darn serious.”

“Do you? Do you know him?” Maggie asks.

Beth frowns.  “Of course, I know him!  You know him!  We’ve known him for two years now!  He’s not some jerk who’s going to use me and then fly away.”

“But you’re so young,” Maggie says.

“Stop saying that!” Beth says loudly.  The words echo off the greenhouse windows.  She bites her lip and squeezes her eyes shut.

“Bethy.” Maggie reaches for her.

“No,” Beth says, opening her eyes and stepping back.  “I don’t know what to call what I have with Daryl, but it’s not one-sided and I’m not a child who doesn’t know any better.  We’re figuring this out together, so just leave it, Maggie.”

“I can’t!” Maggie says.  “Not when it comes to you.  I don’t want you jumping into something so fast.”

“Excuse me?” Beth says, her calm quickly deserting her.  “I am not the one who went up to some guy she’d just met, handed him a condom and said, ‘Hey, let’s bang!’”

Bob snorts but tries to cover it up with a cough while Glenn mutters something and Maggie’s eyes widen and then narrow.

“You do not get to judge me on what I do,” Maggie says pointing her finger at Beth.

“Then why do you get to judge me?” Beth asks incredulously. 

“Because I’m your big sister,” Maggie says.  “Because I’m looking out for you.”

“Then why didn’t you look for me?” Beth cries.  “Why wasn’t my name on those signs next to Glenn’s?”

Beth’s mouth snaps shut as Maggie goes pale and her lips tremble.  Oh, hell, she really didn’t mean to say that.  She really, really didn’t.  It just came out.  She doesn’t want to hurt her sister, she just wants her to _understand_. 

“Beth,” Maggie says, her voice tiny and breaking just a bit.

“No,” Beth says, crouching down to take Judith who, along with everyone else, is looking at Beth with big eyes.  “It’s fine.  I’m fine.  I’m going to go outside.  The fresh air might be good for Judith.”

“I’ll come with,” Carol says, grabbing a bottle and getting to her feet.

Beth turns to go, feeling her sister watching.  Maggie isn’t saying anything and that hurts.  But Beth isn’t going to stand there and defend her choices when Maggie’s not listening to her anyway.

Carol grabs a pitchfork from beside the door to the greenhouse for protection and they walk outside, Beth absently rocking Judith in her arms. 

They walk quietly and Beth breathes in and out and oh, dear Lord, she wants Daryl nearby.  If only to just give her that look that says, ‘These people and their drama.  Good Lord.’

Beth spots Michonne and Carl walking back towards them and she heads that way.  Judith starts fussing and Beth absently offers her thumb again. 

Carl spots them and says, “Four snares set up.  What happened?  Did you yell at Maggie?  Was there hair-pulling?”

Michonne tips his hat into his face and Beth has to laugh.

“No, there was no hair-pulling,” she says, adjusting her hold on Judith.  “I said something awful, but there was no hair-pulling.”

“It wasn’t that awful, honey,” Carol says as they all take a seat on the ground, Judith in the middle of them.  “It was honest.  And probably needed to be said.”

Beth sighs.  “I don’t want to hurt her.”

“Even though she’s hurt you?” Carol asks.

“I’m sure she had a reason,” Beth says hesitantly watching Judith attempt to crawl towards Carl.  “I mean, who’d of thought I’d make it this far?”

“Hey, now,” Michonne says.

“No, it’s okay,” Beth says earnestly.  “I sure didn’t think I would.”  She looks out at the woods that line the edge of the property.  “But I did and I want that to mean something.  Everything I’ve done.  That I’ve had to do and been through.  It needs to mean something.  Because…”

“Because what was the point of it all if it doesn’t mean something,” Carol says quietly, looking down at Judith.

“Yeah,” Beth says sadly.  “Yeah, exactly.”

“Maggie still sees you as her little sister,” Michonne says.  “The one she has to protect.”

“And I don’t mind that, I don’t,” Beth says, tugging at the tall grass by her knee.  “But I’m not that same girl taking care of Judith.  I’m…more than that.”

“You don’t want to take care of Judith anymore?” Carl asks, his face going blank and not looking at Beth.

“It’s not that,” Beth says, tapping the brim of his hat.  “I love Judith, with all my heart.  And I love taking care of her, but that’s not all I’m capable of.”

“If you don’t want to take care of her, just say so,” he says harshly.

“Hey,” Beth says sharply.  “I’m saying nothing of the kind.”  She thinks for a second and then says, “Your daddy asked you to set snares this morning.  What if that’s all he ever asked you to do?  Not to clean the critters after they’re caught or to cook them up or to go hunting with Daryl or to help plan out a route to travel.  Your only job was to set the snares.”

He glances up at her.  “Be kinda boring.”

“But important,” Michonne adds.  “After all, we’re going to eat whatever winds up in them.  But what if that’s _all_ you’re ever asked to do?”

He frowns.  “It’d suck.”  He looks at Beth.  “So…you want people to not treat you like a kid?”

“Yes,” Beth says laughing a little at how simple that sounds.  “That’s precisely what I want.”  She makes a face and looks at Carol.  “Is that really childish of me?”

“No,” Carol says smiling.  “It’s a very grown-up thing for you to want.  And I think people are going to start treating you more equally.  You’re an adult now, they won’t be able to help themselves.”

“Except Maggie,” Carl says, picking Judith up and helping her to dance on the grass.  “She’s always going to think of you as her little sister, like I do Judith.”

Beth sighs.  “Yeah.  Not sure what to do about that.”

“Talk to her,” Carol says.  “Let what you said sink in and I bet she’ll come to you.”

“I guess,” Beth says.  Judith looks over at her and Beth smiles at her.  Judith makes a high-pitched shriek and bounces in Carl’s arms.

Naturally, that’s when there’s a loud rustling in the woods nearby and three walkers stumble out.

Everyone gets to their feet, Carol shoving Carl and Judith behind her and holding up her pitchfork.  Michonne has her sword drawn and advances steadily towards the walkers.  Beth takes her knife out of its sheath and follows.  Michonne decapitates one of them swiftly and Beth takes on the slightly smaller of the three, stabbing her knife into the skull. The walker falls as Michonne takes out the last one.

They stare at the woods looking for more walkers, but it appears it was just these three.

Rapidly approaching footsteps make them turn, holding up their weapons.  But it’s just Glenn, Bob, and Maggie.

“You okay?” Glenn asks.

“We’re fine,” Carol says, lowering her pitchfork.

“We should move these though,” Beth says, prodding a walker with her foot.

“We got it,” Bob says giving her a grin.  “Y’all did the hard part, we’ll do the clean-up.”

Beth grins back and wipes off her knife, then re-sheathes it.  She looks up and Maggie is looking at her, her lips pressed together.  Beth stares back.  Maggie looks away first and Beth suppresses a sigh.

Judith lets out a cry and Carl makes a face.  “Ugh.  I think she did something gross.”

“Give her here,” Beth says holding out her arms.  She wrinkles her nose.  “Ooh, smelly girl.  Let’s get you clean.”

“I’ll come with you,” Carl says. 

“Don’t forget your snares,” Michonne says.

“I won’t,” Carl calls back as Beth and he head towards the greenhouse.

The rest of the day goes quickly and quietly.  Carl’s snares manage to catch two rabbits and, miracles of miracles, a quail.  Maggie shows him how to de-feather the quail and Beth skins the rabbit while Carol looks out for Judith.

Rosita and Tara join Carol and Judith seems to enjoy the company, smiling at everyone and tugging on Rosita’s pigtails.

Maggie doesn’t say anything to Beth but she can feel her watching her as she skins the rabbits quickly and efficiently. Beth wants to say something to her sister, but she just doesn’t know what.  The tension stretches between them so tight it practically hums in the air.

An hour before sundown, the rumbling of vehicles gets everyone looking out the windows and tense.  But when they pull up to the greenhouse and Daryl steps out of one of them, Beth grins.

Everyone goes out to meet the others.

“Got some wheels, I see,” Glenn says looking the trucks over.

“Don’t know how long they’re going to run,” Daryl says.  “The battery on one is shot and you’ve got to jump it.  But it’ll get us a ways.”

“If we can make it to a bigger town,” Rick says.  “We might be able to switch it out for another one.”

They pull out bags of stuff from the truck beds and it’s not much – some cans and some warmer clothes, a few things for Judith - but the rabbits and the quails are cooking up nicely on the spits nearby.

Everyone’s busy getting things sorted to head out in the morning, as Judith seems to be feeling better. 

Even though there isn’t enough to have more than a bite or two, the quail tastes amazing and Carl looks proud when people congratulate him on his catch.

After dinner, Beth reaches for Judith who Rick had been holding while he ate.

“I’ll get her ready for bed,” she says.

“I can do it,” Carl says, beating her to it.  He smiles a little at Beth.  “We can mix it up.  You can set the snares tomorrow.”

Beth grins at him and sits back down. 

“You always take care of Judith,” a voice says quietly.  Beth looks over at Maggie who is staring at her like she doesn’t recognize her.

“Not always,” Beth says firmly, meeting Maggie’s eyes.  Maggie doesn’t look away and once again, Beth doesn’t know what to do.  She’s filled with hurt and frustration and everyone’s looking at them and why doesn’t Maggie just understand that she’s different now?

For the second time that day, Maggie looks away first.

The air feels too thick and heavy in the greenhouse and so Beth gets to her feet, mumbling, “Just gonna get some air.”

She makes sure she has her knife and steps outside.  Not going too far, she walks down the side of the greenhouse and leans against the wall, looks up at the sky, and tries to calm down.

It’s not like she and Maggie haven’t fought before.  There was a huge dust-up over who got to ride Nellie when Beth was fourteen.  They didn’t speak to each other for a week after that one.  But this is different. 

Near silent footsteps approach and she smiles.

“Hi,” she says turning to look at Daryl.

“Hey, yourself,” he says coming to lean against the wall next to her.  “What’s with you and Maggie?”

“Why, I had a lovely day, thank you for asking,” Beth says giving him a look.  “How was yours?”

“Long and I’m damn near ready to take that Abraham and shove him and his goddamn quest off a cliff,” he says, nudging her shoulder.  “What’s with you and Maggie?  She looked madder than a wet cat in there.”

“She’s not mad,” Beth says with a sigh.  “She just doesn’t know what to do with me and I don’t know how to make her see.”

“See what?” he asks.

“See me!” she says pushing off the wall and pacing a little.  “I’m not who I was!  I’m not just going to take care of Judith and keep quiet.  Not when I can do more.  I’ve done things.  Hard things.  And I’m not going to be treated like a kid.”

She looks at him and he doesn’t say anything, so she keeps going. 

“And she thinks you’re going to just run off on me.  That you don’t take this as seriously as I do.  And that’s not fair to you.” She eyes him as she paces, but he’s just watching her and not saying anything. 

She continues, “Although it does feel like I haven’t seen you in days and we haven’t even done anything since that night you kissed me and so I don’t even know if one good kiss is enough to call this anything, since you haven’t—“

Suddenly he’s right there in front of her, his hands cupping her face and his mouth moving hot on hers.  She makes a tiny squeak of surprise that quickly turns into a sigh as she clutches at his waist and pulls him close.  His tongue pushes past her lips and she stumbles a bit, but he walks her slowly backwards.  Her back gently hits the wall of the greenhouse and his hands cradle her head as his tongue strokes slowly and languidly against hers.  One hand slides from her head, down her side to hitch her leg up on his hip and he rocks slightly against her and she rocks back.  They groan into each other’s mouths.

Her insides are twisting and curling up with pleasure and when he pulls back, she whimpers.

“Well,” he says, roughly, his eyes dark.  “Hopefully that’s me off your shitlist.”

“Not sure,” she says reaching up and tracing his lips with her fingers.  “Might need to do that again to make sure you and me are square.”

An honest-to-God growl comes out of his throat and she’s grinning when his mouth descends firmly and fiercely on hers.

She sighs happily when he pulls back a second time and she says, “Yeah, we’re good now, Dixon.”

“Girl, I swear,” he says, stepping away just a little.  “Had you all in my head today.”

“You were in mine,” she says.  “Even when I was busy, you were there.”

He looks pleased, but tries to hide it by looking away.  “So, Maggie doesn’t like what we’ve got going on?”

Beth shrugs.  “I don’t think she knows what to make of it.  And I don’t know how to make her understand.”

“Can’t help that you’re pissed off at her,” he says.

“I’m not pissed off at her,” Beth says shocked. 

He stares at her.  “Yeah, you are.”

“I’m not!”

“Baby, she thought you were dead,” he says bluntly.  “You can be pissed off about that.”

“But I understand why she thought that,” Beth says. 

“Don’t mean you can’t still be angry at her,” he says shrugging.

The simplicity and truth of what he’s just said hits her smack in the solar plexus.  Because it’s true.  That’s what this is.  She’s hurt and she angry.  Oh, she’s so angry at Maggie for not looking for her.  For not believing in her.  God, did Maggie even miss her at all?

“Oh,” Beth breathes.  “I am.  I am so angry at my sister.”

A noise off to the side has them turning, Beth’s hand on her knife, Daryl on his. 

Maggie stands there, her eyes wide and startled.  She’s just staring at Beth.

“Can I---” She has to clear her throat.  “Can I talk to you?”

Daryl glances at Beth and she nods.  “Yeah.  Of course.”

“I’ll just be inside,” Daryl says, touching the back of his fingers to Beth’s arm.  He heads back in, pausing next to Maggie.  He looks at her and says, “You have a problem with me, take it out on me.  Not her.”

“I don’t have a problem with you, Daryl,” Maggie says meeting his eyes.

Daryl nods, then with one last look at Beth, goes inside.

They just stand awkwardly for a moment before Maggie says, “Beth, I’m so sorry.”

“I know,” Beth says softly, wrapping her arms around her waist.  “I get it, I do.  I’m not the obvious candidate for survival out here.”

“That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t have believed in you,” Maggie says.  She leans against the wall but keeps her eyes on Beth.  “Every time I thought about you, I remembered seeing Daddy and what happened to him and I just…pushed it from my mind.  It hurt so much.”

“I know,” Beth says again nodding.  “I did the same.”

“I should’ve looked for you,” Maggie says, her voice cracking.

“You couldn’t’ve have known where to start,” Beth says coming over to her and leaning against the wall beside her.

“Doesn’t matter,” Maggie says shaking her head.  “I’m sorry, Beth.”

“It’s okay,” Beth says.  Maggie gives her a look that immediately calls her on what she’s just said.  “Okay, it’s not okay.  I’m still mad that you didn’t have faith in me.  That I could make it.  You’re my sister, you’re supposed to be on my side.”

“I am,” Maggie says firmly.  “And I always will be.  I don’t know how to make things right between us.”

“Time,” Beth says shrugging.  “And putting your money where your mouth is.  Prove that you believe in me.”

“I will,” she says nodding.  She faces Beth and takes her hand.  “I will, I promise.  I’ll make this up to you.”

“Good,” Beth says.  “You can start by not judging me and Daryl.”

Maggie makes a face.  “I’m not judging you, I just don’t want you to get hurt.  You’re still my little sister, you know.”

“I know,” Beth says squeezing Maggie’s hand.  “And I want you looking out for me.  But _I’m_ looking out for me and Daryl’s a part of that.”

“Okay.  I understand,” Maggie says.  “This is me, believing in you and trusting your judgment. I just…”  She sighs. “I didn’t want you to change on me.  You were always a constant for me.  You were always inside, locked away, taking care of Judith.  You were safe there.  Seeing you now, just makes me miss how things were.  Makes me see how unsafe we all are.”

“I know, but I’ve done things, Maggie,” Beth says quietly, looking down at their hands, knowing that hers have killed a man.  “I’m not the same.  None of us are.  Because things are so unsafe.  And we’ve got to change to keep up.  _That’s_ the only constant now, I think.  Change.”

“I guess,” Maggie says. 

They stand there in the dark, holding tight to each other’s hands and listening to the soft murmurs from the group inside.

“So,” Maggie says, attempting a lighter tone.  “What’s it like kissing Daryl Dixon?”

Beth burst into giggles.  “Pretty darn amazing, actually.  And that’s all I’m saying on the topic!”

“Have you gone beyond kissing?” Maggie says grinning.  “Do we need to have the talk?  Does Glenn need to threaten him?”

“I think I’d pay cash money to watch that,” Beth says still giggling.  “And no, we haven’t done anything other than a few kisses.  Not,” Beth says tugging on Maggie’s hand, “that that’s any of your beeswax.”

“I’ll butt out, I promise,” Maggie says crossing her heart.  “But don’t knock the whole handing the man a condom and then jumping his bones.  It’ll get results.”

Beth has to cover her mouth to keep her snickers quiet and Maggie joins in.  And it feels good.  Laughing with Maggie.  The air’s been cleared and while Beth still feels sad that Maggie hadn’t believed in her before, she’s pretty sure that she does now.  And that will have to be good enough.

They head back into the greenhouse, Beth’s eyes immediately finding Daryl’s.  She grins when he arches an eyebrow at her.

Maggie heads over to Glenn and Beth heads towards Daryl. 

“You two good?” he asks.

“Not as good as _we_ were earlier,” she murmurs.   She’s delighted when a blush creeps across his face.

“Knock that off, woman,” he mutters, looking away.

“What’s going on?” she asks when she sees Rick and Abraham consulting the map again.  Another map beside them and Beth thinks it looks like one for South Carolina and folks look to be a mixture of worried and excited.  

“Trying to figure out where to head next,” Daryl says.  He looks at her.  “Looks like we’re going on a road trip.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I sure that I’m taking several liberties as I’m not entirely sure where they supposedly are in the show, but I’m putting them north of Atlanta in this story. The trivia about the Monkees’ song comes from Wikipedia.
> 
> Thank you SO MUCH for all of your reviews! I’m walking around with the biggest grin on my face these days. I apologize for the shortness of this chapter as well as the cliffhanger, but we’re almost to the end! There should be two more chapters after this one.

“Looks like we’re going on a road trip,” Daryl says.

“Is that a good idea?” Beth asks.

Rick looks over.  “Why do you ask?”

“Just to ask, really,” Beth says shrugging.  “How clear are the roads these days?”

“If we keep to the county highways and state roads,” Abraham says, “it should be smooth-sailing all the way to DC.”

Daryl snorts and shakes his head.  Abraham gets to his feet and squares his shoulders.

“Problem, man?” he asks Daryl, a challenge in his tone.

“Nah, no problem,” Daryl says.  “But there’s no way you’re going to get to DC before winter’s on us.”  He looks at Rick.  “I got no problems going northeast, but we gotta hole up somewhere for winter.”

“I agree,” Tyreese says.  “Winter on the road just isn’t a good idea.” He nods at Judith.  “’Specially not with the little one.”

Beth nods.  “Judith’s a tough little thing, but I’m not sure she should be outside when it’s freezing.”

“We’re further north than before,” Carol adds. “I don’t want to spend another winter like the last one.”

There’s a general murmur of agreement and Beth shivers.  The last winter they spent roaming silently across the state was hard on all of them.

“We go northeast,” Daryl says.  “We hit the edge of the Chattahoochee or the Nantahala National Forest and set up camp somewhere.  Get as many supplies as we can on the way and then we got the forest at our backs.  Good hunting.”

“Fewer people,” Glenn adds.  “That’d be nice for a change.”

“Look, I hear what you’re saying,” Abraham says.  “But I have got to get this man to DC.  It’s a matter of national security.”

Bob chuckles a bit darkly.  “What nation, man?  We aren’t exactly reciting the Pledge of Allegiance these days.”

“We understand your urgency,” Rick says quietly.  “But I’m not putting any of my family at risk if I don’t have to.  You’re welcome to stick with us, but I’m not attempting to travel halfway up the Eastern seaboard in the winter.” 

“I hear you,” Abraham says.  “And I respect that.  But don’t y’all want to save the world?”

“No,” Carol says simply, rubbing her hand on a sleeping Judith’s back.  “We just want to survive.” 

Abraham stares at her for a second then looks around at the rest of the group.  Eventually, he nods.  “All right.  If y’all don’t mind us tagging along, we’d appreciate the company until we can head out on our own.”

“I think we’re all okay with that,” Rick says looking around.  Beth notices he looks at Daryl the longest, who just nods.  Rick nods back.  “All right then.  Looks like we’re going to need another set of wheels.”

They pick Clarkesville, Georgia as their destination on the map.  It’s a few miles out from the forest and looks to be a good spot to set up.  Carol remembers visiting it once with her parents.

“Of course, that was ages ago,” she says, “and it’s bound to have grown since then.  But it wasn’t that populated when I was there.”

“No telling how the roads are gonna be up there,” Bob says.  “Could be road-blocked.”

“Looks close to the forest,” Daryl says rubbing his chin.  “Could be all right.”

Rick looks around.  “Won’t know ‘til we get there.  Everyone all right with Clarkesville?”

Beth looks around at everyone and feels a stir of excitement inside of her.  _Funny how it helps to have some kind of purpose, a destination_ , she thinks.  _Wonder what we’ll find up there?_

“All right,” Rick says when no one objects.  “Clarkesville it is.”

“Gonna have that damn Monkees song stuck in my head,” Michonne mutters and Beth snickers.

“Actually, that song’s about Clarksville, Tennessee,” Abraham says.  “It’s near Fort Campbell where the new recruits were sent before being shipped off to Vietnam.”  He grins.  “My mama used to sing it to me and my brother every night.”

Maggie glances at Beth and sings the first line, “ _Take the last train to Clarksville and I’ll meet you at the station…_ ”

“ _You can be here by four-thirty, ‘cause I’ve made your reservation_ ,” Beth adds.

“ _Oh don’t be slow_ ,” Tyreese joins in.  “ _Oh, no, no, no_.”

“ _Oh, no, no, no_ ,” Bob, Sasha, Abraham, and Tara join in.

“Oh, good Lord,” Daryl mutters.  Beth elbows his side and he huffs out a laugh.  “What?  Am I going to have to listen to this for the next month?”

“Yep,” she says grinning. 

“Kill me now,” he murmurs shaking his head. 

They head out the next day, crammed into the two trucks, most folks sitting in the truck beds.  Daryl drives one and Rick drives the other.  Beth holds on to Judith in her lap, wedged up against Daryl as he drives, Carol beside her.  Rick takes point and they roll out.

It’s smoother than Beth expected, only have to stop every now and then to roll a car off the road if it’s blocking the lanes.  They fly past walkers that stumble after the noise of the trucks.

They don’t see another living soul.

“Where is everyone?” Beth asks softly, holding Judith close.

“Dead? Hunkering down?” Daryl suggests.  “Don’t matter.  As long as they stay away from us.”

Beth rest her hand on his thigh.  He jumps slightly, then eases up, and the muscles under her hand gentle.  Carol glances over and winks at Beth.

They stop in every town they can, parking on the outskirts, and sending some of the group in for supplies.

They hotwire an SUV and one day is spent replacing the faulty battery in one of the trucks.  Abraham takes the wheel of that one and follows behind Rick and Daryl.

Two weeks is spent in this manner as the going is slow due to all the stopping for supplies.

They find a drugstore in one of the towns that hasn’t been looted too much and Beth, Sasha, and Daryl go inside while the others stay inside the trucks just outside.    

Daryl scans the aisles of the drugstore, his crossbow aimed and ready, then nods to Beth and Sasha to go ahead.  They quickly grab what they need and after a quick look around, Sasha heads behind the counter to get to the prescription drugs.

Beth fills up her bag with various feminine products and when she comes to the birth control she pauses.  She glances at Daryl who’s just scooping up all the bandages and dumping them into a trash bag.  After looking over her shoulder at Sasha who’s busy looking for antibiotics, Beth wanders over to Daryl.

“Hey,” Beth says to him.

He glances up.  “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she says.  “Just, um.”

She hands him a box of condoms.  He stares at them and then whips his head up to hers so fast she thinks she hears it crack.

“Uh,” he says looking poleaxed.

“Just putting it out there,” she says shrugging.  “And keeping up a Greene girl tradition.”

“You saying you want to have a quick one in a drugstore?” he says stepping in close.  “’Cause I sure don’t.”

They haven’t really had much time alone together since they started traveling, but Beth doesn’t expect him to be quite so dismissive.  Her heart and her nerve sinks to the floor.

“Oh,” she says frowning and looking down.  “I mean, sure.  I don’t either, really.  I didn’t mean…”

“See, when this happens,” he says looming over her, his voice low and heavy.  “And baby,” she looks up at him, “it’s going to happen.  It’s going be nice and slow and I’m going to take my time and make it good for you.”

“Oh,” she says again feeling a little weak in the knees.

“We ain’t just gonna do it fast and dirty,” he says.  “It’s going to be done right and I’m going to touch every inch of you three times over.”

“Okay,” she says weakly, hoping Sasha can’t hear this, but too turned on to actually care that much.

“We’re going to do this right,” he repeats.  “And then, after we’ve done things all proper and slow and steady, then,” he catches her eyes and says solemnly, “then we’re gonna bang.”

Beth freezes and then groans as she smacks his chest.  “Oh, God.  Who told you I said that?  Glenn?”

“Carol, actually,” he says grinning and pocketing the box on condoms.  “Said it was the funniest thing she’d heard in years.  Said Maggie’s face was a picture.”

“Jerk,” Beth says grinning back.

“Hey, lovebirds,” Sasha calls from the prescription counter.  She’s smirking at them but nods towards the window.  “Better get a move on.”

“Got everything?” Daryl asks them both, a grin still on his face.  They nod.  “Let’s go.”

He’s still grinning a few miles down the road and only stops when Beth pokes him in his side.

A few days later, they reach the edge of a larger city not too far from Clarkesville, Rick signals for them to pull over.  Everyone gets out.

“Bigger place,” he says nodding at the city ahead.  “Should we risk it?”

“Could keep going,” Maggie says.

Abraham shakes his head.  “We need better weapons.  Pickings have been slim on those.”

“My crossbow is about to give up the ghost,” Beth says.  “And we could always use some more formula for Judith.  That last place didn't have much.”

“Bound to have a hunting store somewhere in there,” Daryl says eyeing the town.  He eyes the sky which is darkening as the day goes on.  “Don’t like the look of those clouds.  I say we go in and get out fast.”

“Suggest we drive up through, see if they’ve got what we need, and then double back,” Abraham says.  “Get the trucks on the other side of the city in case we need to make a quick escape.”

“Good idea,” Rick says nodding.  “Let’s go.”

They drive around the edge of the city, a few walkers appearing as they go.  The roads are mostly clear, but that doesn’t help the chills that are traveling up and down Beth’s spine.

“Don’t think I like this,” Beth says quietly as they drive along.  Carol’s holding Judith and she glances over.

“You pinging?” Daryl asks, his hands light on the steering wheel.

“Something fierce,” she says.

“Stay close,” is all he says. 

Rick turns his truck onto a street with a median running down the middle of it.  The grass is overgrown and the wheels of the trucks drive over it as they go. 

“Boo yah,” Daryl mutters and Beth sees the hunting store, its storefront windows still intact.  There’s a drugstore a few doors down that looks decent, too. 

They drive down the main street seeing only the odd walker here and there.  Once they get through and the buildings start to thin out again, they pull over.

Everyone gathers together by the side of the road.

“Should we just go for it?” Rick asks glancing up at the sky.  “Most everyone stay here, while the rest of us grab stuff and fill up one of the trucks?”

Everyone agrees and it’s decided that Beth will go, as she knows what baby supplies are needed, along with Daryl, Rick, Michonne, and Abraham.

Maggie takes Beth’s hand before she gets back into the truck.  Beth smiles at her and says, “You’re not going to tell me to stay behind?  Is this you being supportive?”

“Yes,” Maggie says.  “It’s also me being scared out of my wits, but yes.  You know your own mind.  But, just be careful, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Beth says with a smile.  They hug and then Beth hops into the bed of the truck and sits next to Michonne.  She waves at Maggie as they drive back towards town.

They drive through the quiet streets, Beth holding her crossbow tight in her hands as she keeps her eyes wide open.

“Seems awful quiet,” she says in a soft whisper.

Michonne nods, but doesn’t say anything.

Rick pulls the truck over just outside the hunting store and a few walkers stumble up to them.  Daryl and Michonne take them out quickly and near silently. 

There’s an odd, arrhythmic banging coming from somewhere, but Beth can’t see where it’s coming from.  Daryl notices it, too and she sees him scanning the storefronts.

They go into the store as quietly as they can.  Abraham wincing with the bells rings as he opens the door.

“Christ,” he mutters as they all file in. 

The store had been looted, but only for the obvious things.  There are some crossbows hanging up towards the back and Daryl grabs as many bags of bolts that he can.  Shoving one into his pocket, he gives the others to Beth who takes them outside, along with Michonne who carries several boxes of bullets and some MREs.

“In case we get real desperate,” she says under her breath.  Beth makes a face when Michonne holds one of the bags up.  It’s labeled Tuna Surprise.

“Gross,” Beth mutters.  A crack of thunder makes them both jump and look up.  The dark clouds from before are right over them.  Beth winces and says, “Great.”

They head back inside, almost running into Abraham carrying three shotguns.

He glances up.  “Looks like a heck of a storm’s coming.  Better hurry.”

After cleaning out the store as best they can, Daryl hands her a smaller crossbow to replace her old one.  She beams at him.

“Thank you,” she says warmly, testing the weight of the new crossbow in her arms.

He blushes.  “Careful with it.  It takes more muscle to pull the bow back than the other one did.”

“I’ll be careful,” she says grinning.  She loads up an arrow and tests out the sight.  “Feels good.”

Beth and Daryl then go towards the drugstore while the others cut across to a hardware store.

After taking out a couple of walkers near the entrance, they slip inside the drugstore.  Beth quickly fills up a bag with formula and some jars of baby food.

“Hell,” she hears Daryl mutter and she looks up.  The sky has just opened up and rain is pouring down fast and hard.  He looks over at her and asks, “You ready?”

She nods and holds up her bag.

Edging out the door, they walk towards the truck.  The banging from before sounds louder and Beth still can’t quite make out where it’s coming from.  The rain is really coming down and it’s difficult to see through.  Lightning and thunder crash directly overhead and Beth jumps.

Rick, Michonne, and Abraham are crossing the street as Beth throws the bag of baby supplies in the bed.  She holds onto her crossbow and notices Daryl standing several feet away on the sidewalk, looking at some cellar doors next to the hunting store.  Rain is pouring down his face, but he’s just standing there, ignoring it in favor of staring at the doors.

Squinting through the rain spattering on her face, she walks over to him. 

“What is it?” she asks over the roar of the rain. 

He nods at the doors that are shaking and Beth realizes that’s where the banging was coming from.  The doors are swelling up and down as something pushes up at them from underneath.

“Walkers?” she asks edging away.

“Probably,” he answers.  He starts to move her back towards the truck.  “Should get out of—“

He doesn’t have a chance to finish his sentence as a blinding strike of lightning hits a telephone pole across the street followed by an earth-shaking crack of thunder.

The pole makes a terrible groan and creak, then begins to fall directly towards Beth and Daryl.

His hands are hard on her arms as he pulls her to the side and they crash to the ground a few feet from where the pole is falling.  Beth grunts as her knee skids on the concrete.

“Oh, shit,” Daryl says as they see the pole fall directly on top of the cellar doors. 

The doors fall inwards and there’s the slightest second of quiet before the groans start and then walkers stream out onto the street, blocking any chance for Beth and Daryl to get to the truck.

Beth’s eyes widen when several walkers start to stumble towards them, arms outstretched, and mouths gaping open.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I have a feeling this is a chapter people have been waiting for. This chapter is M-rated but if you'd like to skip that part, just stop at the asterisks. Enjoy! (One more chapter to go and possibly an epilogue!)

Beth's eyes widen when several walkers start to stumble towards them, arms outstretched, and mouths gaping open.

A walker sprawled on the ground reaches out for Beth. She grits her teeth and kicks out with her foot, her boot heel smacking the walker in the forehead.

Daryl's firing at another walker that's looming towards them. She can't count how many there are, but the smell of them is overpowering and they just keep coming.

"Get up!" Daryl shouts at her.

She scrambles to her feet and aims her crossbow, hitting a walker in his eye. She can see Rick, Michonne, and Abraham on the other side of the fallen telephone pole as they fight off their own group of walkers.

A sound like a train racing past makes her wince as she walks steadily back, and Daryl grabs at her arm. Hail starts to pummel them as they edge away from the walkers heading their way.

"We gotta find cover," he shouts over the rain and he points to the sky. It's gone dark grey and the clouds are swirling and she _knows_ that sound. She was only five years old when a tornado touched down ten miles from their farm, but she remembers what it sounded like, full of fury and wind.

Daryl takes out another walker and then another by swinging his crossbow at its head.

"Hey!" Rick calls to them, but Beth can't see any way of getting back to the truck, not with walkers streaming out of the cellar and that damn pole in the way.

A strong gust of wind knocks down the sign off the hunting store and it crashes to the ground, pinning some walkers beneath it and just missing the truck by a foot.

Across the road, a tree branch crashes into a shop window and several more walkers come groaning out, heading towards Rick and the others. Abraham opens fire on them. More walkers round the corner ahead of them, drawn by the sounds.

"Shit, just go!" Daryl shouts. "Get the hell outta here! We'll catch up with you!"

He grabs Beth's arm and pulls her away from the walkers and down the road, away from the others.

"Beth!" Michonne yells.

"We'll catch up!" Beth shouts, echoing Daryl's words. "Clarkesville! We'll meet you in Clarkesville!"

Beth turns and catches Daryl's eyes as they run away from the others. The hail and rain is coming down in sheets and it stings Beth's face as they turn to run down the street, walkers stumbling after them. They turn a corner and Daryl curses.

Another cellar door has been smashed open and more walkers are spilling onto the street. They dodge outstretched arms and Beth swings her crossbow, knocking a walker aside.

"Jesus Christ," he shouts as Beth tugs him down another street. "They just shove everybody in the basement?"

They run past the town square around a rectangular green lawn and the wind has picked up and the small crepe myrtle trees are bending over with the force of it with leaves flying every which way.

"Gotta get somewhere strong!" Daryl shouts.

Beth nods and they keep running.

As they head down another side street towards a series of houses, a green awning over a cafe window swings down and strikes Daryl's forehead.

He grunts from the impact and falls to his knees.

"No!" Beth yells, her heart stopping and then surging quickly in her chest. She checks his face and the wound is already starting to bleed, but he blinks at her and shakes his head.

"'M fine," he says wincing.

"Come on," she says, ducking under his arm and half-lifting him to his feet. She squints through the rain and hail and spots a red brick house across the road. She points. "There! The brick one."

Daryl stumbles slightly as they walk quickly across the road to the brick house its white shutters banging against the side of the house.

That loud roaring sound comes through again and they hurl themselves at the front door. Beth shouts once to draw anything to them, but nothing responds.

They slam the door closed and Daryl throws the deadbolt. They open up the first door they see situated under the stairs. It's filled with old toys and blankets and they frantically pull them out to make room for themselves

The roar is louder and the house is starting to shake.

"Get in!" Daryl grabs Beth's arm and practically throws her inside the small space. She huddles down into a corner and Daryl follows her in and pulls the door closed.

It's fully dark inside the closet a part from the pale line of light at the base of the door and Beth grabs Daryl's vest and pulls him close.

He hunches down and wraps his arms around her and buries his face in her hair.

The roar is right on top of them and the floor vibrates and Beth wants to cover her ears it's so loud. Daryl's arms are like steel around her and she presses her face against the leather of vest and squeezes her eyes shut.

The roar is deafening and the house groans around them and then…

Silence.

Utter silence.

Beth isn't sure if she can trust it, so she cautiously lifts her head as Daryl lifts his own. Her ears are ringing something and she can't stop her hands from shaking.

"Is it safe?" she whispers.

"Not sure," he says. She looks at him and sucks in a gasp as the light under the door illuminates his face dimly.

"Your head," she says, grabbing a blanket off the shelf and pressing it to the deep cut above his eyebrow. He winces.

"Sorry," she murmurs. "But it's bleeding pretty bad."

"Yeah, head cuts always do," he says, pressing his hand over hers. "You can patch me up later. Let's see the damage first."

Beth frowns, but lets him move away to push open the closet door. She blinks at the light, but notices that it's still raining heavily outside.

They go to the door and peek out the windows.

"Oh, wow," Beth murmurs. The houses across the street, the ones left standing that is, are gutted. Wooden cladding is strewn about the street, household debris is everywhere. A large tree has been uprooted and lies on its side blocking the entrance to the street. The tornado landed far too close for Beth's liking.

"Thought it was too late in the season for tornadoes," she says quietly.

"Not in this world, I guess," Daryl says, his face grim. "Mother Nature must want to clean things up."

Walker bodies lay all over the place and Beth wonders where they all came from. She makes a face when she realizes some of the bodies are still moving. Even more worrying are the ones that are on their feet and stumbling about.

"Should we get out of here?" she asks, not liking the amount of walkers on the street. "Find the others?"

"Gonna be dark soon," Daryl says, scanning the street. "That rain doesn't look like it's going to let up, neither."

"True. And honestly, you shouldn't be walking around with that cut on your head," she says, walking over to him. He looks down at her while she tilts his head towards the dim light coming in through the window. "Don't think it needs stitches." She looks back out the window. "Can we stay here tonight?"

He peers out the window again and says, "Don't like being around all those walkers and all that mess. Half those trees look like they're going to pitch over at any time."

"So we head out the back door?" Beth suggests. "Go towards the least damaged houses?"

"Yeah," he nods. "Don't want the thing that takes us out to be a goddamned tree."

"Me neither," Beth says. "But first, I'm bandaging that cut."

"No time," he says shaking his head. "Don't want to lose the light. Just slap a band-aid on it."

He sits still (mostly) long enough for Beth to do just that after she rummaged through the bathroom on the second floor where she found some large band-aids, some washcloths, and some aspirin. He won't let her spend the time to clean up where the blood has streaked across his face and so she only attaches two band-aids to the worst of the cut.

"That should do for now," she says, pressing a quick kiss to his head.

"Knock it off," he mutters and she just grins at him.

They do a quick sweep through the kitchen and grab what cans they find in the cupboard. Beth finds a backpack and they shove the cans and what's left of the band-aids inside.

Daryl loads up his crossbow with the bolts he'd taken from the store earlier and then slip out the back of the house. The damage to the houses behind them isn't as bad as the ones on the front, but long planks of wood and other pieces of debris lie all over the place.

They walk carefully away from the more damaged of the houses, the rain once again soaking into Beth's jacket and jeans, matting her hair to her head.

Daryl leads them northeast, in the direction they want to head eventually and they come to a row of houses that look better off with only a few downed limbs in the yards. They pick another brick house, this one a single story, and after walking through it and finding no bodies or walkers, they lock up the front door.

The rain and the wind are still howling outside and Beth shivers, her clothes still wet on her body. There's a small marble fireplace while there isn't any firewood, there's some of those fire logs that are supposed to burn for hours. Daryl sets to getting those in place.

"Going to see if I can find some other clothes," she says heading towards the master bedroom.

Daryl nods. "Pick me some out, too?"

Beth finds some jeans that should fit her, if a little baggy, along with a long-sleeved green shirt. She finds some grey pants that should fit Daryl, along with some flannel shirts.

She walks back into the living room and stops when she sees that Daryl's already stripped off his vest and is working on unbuttoning his shirt. He looks up at her, through the wet strands of hair hanging over his eyes. She can see his throat work as he swallows hard and she walks slowly into the room.

"Found some clothes," she says and she doesn't recognize her own voice. It's gone all low and husky and she's just been feet away from a tornado, she shouldn't be primed and ready to jump Daryl Dixon's bones, for God's sake.

He just watches her and his hands fall from his shirt. She looks at him and rolls her eyes.

"You look like you've been in a horror movie," she says. "Can I please clean up your face now?"

"Knock yourself out," he says sitting on the floor next to the fireplace, the fire log cheerfully burning.

"That darn thing almost knocked _you_ out," she says kneeling in front of him and grabbing the backpack for the band-aids and other supplies.

"Got a hard head," he says.

"That's for darn sure," she retorts grinning at him.

She wets the washcloth with some astringent she found in the bathroom and gently wipes the blood from his face. He just watches her as she carefully drags the washcloth across his face. Her skin feels too tight and she bites her lip to keep from asking him to touch her.

"Quiet," he says after a little while.

"Hmm?" she says meeting his eyes.

"It's quiet," he says, awkwardly. "With just us."

"I kinda like it," she says, smiling a little crookedly. "Feel sort of bad about it, but I like it when it's quiet."

"I won't tell anyone," he says. He looks down while she takes off the band-aids she'd stuck on earlier that have gone crooked during their dash through the rain. "It's good we found everyone."

"It is," she says, glancing at him.

"Glad we did," he adds.

"Me, too," she says pouring some water onto a clean cloth.

"We'll find them again," he says. "When the weather clears up. Find us a car and catch up to them."

"I know," she says.

"But…" He sighs.

"But?" she repeats.

He looks at her and she feels something warm and tingly inside her stretch and twist.

"But it's nice being here with you," he says, his voice so soft she almost doesn't hear him.

"Yeah?" she says.

"Yeah," he answers.

They sit in silence while Beth cleans the cut itself with the washcloth. She winces as she dabs at it and says, "Sorry, I know that stings."

He just stares at her, having gone quiet again. She wonders if the awning hit him harder than she thought.

"Are you okay?" she asks. She holds up three fingers. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Three, I ain't concussed," he says his voice as steady as his eyes are as he watches her face. "I just don't know what I did in my lifetime that was good enough to be here with you."

Beth feels her face flush and she bites her lip. "You were just you," she says going back to patching up the gash on his forehead. "Not altogether sure what I did to get here, either."

"I ain't no prize," he says. "And you're fucking beautiful. What the fuck are you doing with me, Beth?"

"Falling the fuck in love with you, what do you think?" she says grinning a little helplessly at him. His eyes widen and she has to laugh. "Oh, looks like I found another way to get you quiet."

She finishes cleaning the cut and puts a band-aid on it, then sits back, watching and waiting to see what he'll do. He hasn't moved since she spoke and she's now feeling apprehensive and a little restless.

"You sure that's a good idea?" he manages after a while.

"What? Falling in love with you?" she says. She shrugs, far more casually than she feels. "I'm pretty sure I've had dumber ideas."

"I'm an asshole sometimes," he says.

"I'm a spoiled brat sometimes," she counters. "Nobody's perfect, Daryl. And…we're better together. Aren't we?"

"Yeah, but… Don't think I can say it back to you," he says looking pained.

She shakes her head. "I don't need you to. Just…show it sometimes?"

There's a pause and she can almost see the precise moment where he comes to some sort of decision.

"I can do that," he says before he leans in and kisses her. ***

The kiss is rough and messy and they've been running on pure adrenaline for the last several hours and the storm is still raging outside and her skin is chilled from the rain, so when his hands cup her face, she gasps at the heat that flares up. He presses his advantage and his tongue slides alongside hers. She starts pulling at his shirt, fingers fumbling with buttons, as he pulls her wet jacket off.

The next few minutes are filled with both their curses as they try to take their wet clothes off and Beth can't help laughing out loud when her jeans get stuck on her boots.

"Goddamn it," he mutters while he chuckles and she presses her mouth to his, trying to capture the sound of his laughter in her mouth.

After several breathless kisses, Beth feels like she's going to burn up from the inside if he doesn't touch her and they go back to getting their damn clothes off.

Then she's naked, on her back, and he's covering her body with his and his body is so incredibly _hot_ on top of hers. His skin is warm and stretched taut over lean muscles and his hands are gentle even as his calluses catch on her skin. She runs her hands over his chest and his sides, around to his back. He jumps when her fingers trace his scars, but she quiets whatever he was about to say with her mouth and he just groans against her lips.

His mouth moves down her neck and across the sharpness of her collarbone and then he's cupping and licking at her breast. The rasp of his tongue on her nipple sends a furious pulse through her and she holds his head in place as he gently suckles her. Then he drags the flat of his tongue over her nipple and she moans and wraps her legs around his waist, trying to pull him closer. He moves back up to kiss her mouth hard.

"You done this before?" he asks as his mouth moves down to suck at a spot on her throat.

"Just the once," she breathes. "Please don't stop."

"Wild horses," he mutters before taking her mouth again with his.

His hands are everywhere and when they finally, finally stroke where she's gotten so wet and so hot, she arches her back and her nails dig into his shoulder blades.

"Ease up," he murmurs, his mouth on her temple. "I'm gonna get you there, go easy, easy."

But she can't. It feels like she's been waiting forever for this feeling to be released and she can't stop her hips from rocking against his hand and she squeezes her eyes shut.

"Un huh, open 'em," he says pulling his face back. "I gotta see those eyes, Beth."

Her eyes open on a gasp and as he strokes something just inside, her gasp rises in pitch and she's goes nearly blind with pleasure and sparks surge through her body.

"Oh, Christ," he says on a groan and she tugs his head down to hers. The kiss is sloppy and she can't get her legs to wrap around him, they've gone limp in the aftermath of her orgasm.

He raises his head and curses as he reaches for his pants. She watches dazedly as he pulls out a familiar box and she snickers.

"Yeah, laugh it up, Greene," he mutters practically tearing the box in half to get at the condoms. She does laugh, she can't help herself, she's giggling and she wonders if this is why people do drugs? Is it to reach this giddy high that's filled her body and her head? She runs her hands over his chest and down and around to palm his butt.

"God, you feel good," she says as he sits back on his haunches and then she's watching him roll the condom down and she has a moment of panic because this is important and there's no taking this back. But when she glances up at his face and sees him just looking at her, she just smiles and reaches for him.

He meets her halfway, his mouth crashing back to hers and she's flat on the floor again and she feels him at her entrance and then he's easing inside of her and it's them and they're together and then she's moving and he's moving and everything's building up inside of her once again, but it's sharper now and she's filled up with him, his taste in her mouth, his smell in her nose, and his texture under her hands and against her skin and, and, and…

She actually cries out when she comes and he follows her with a shout of her name and his hips pulse against hers and her entire universe is this moment and this man and there's nothing else she needs.

* * *

Later, after he's gotten rid of the condom, he rolls back over and pulls her close and she tucks her leg in between his. The fire is still blazing in the fireplace and Beth feels warm all over. Slightly sore in places, truth be told, but happier than she ever remembers being. Tears prick behind her eyes and she breathes in shakily, trying to hold them in.

He notices, of course.

"Hey," he says as he raises his head to look at her. "You okay? Was I too rough?"

"No, no," she says smiling and shaking her head. "Happy tears, I promise."

He doesn't look convinced, so she lifts her lips to his and kisses him gently and then with more force until he's on his back and she's sprawled on top of him. When she's had her fill, she slides down and rests her head on his chest.

"I meant to go slower," he says pressing his mouth to the top of her head.

"We got all night," she says, pressing a kiss to where his heart beats in his chest. "I'm not exactly opposed to doing that again, you know."

His hand slides up the length of her spine and then back down to rest on her butt; she wriggles against him and feels the blood beneath her skin start to simmer.

"Should eat something," he says, his hand traveling across her back again.

"Yeah?" she says breathlessly as she hitches her leg up to rest against a part of him that's quickly hardening.

"Should also get some sleep," he says, his voice tight and restrained. "Had a busy day today."

"We sure did," she says pressing kisses across his chest and sliding her body to rest fully on top of his.

"Or," he says, his hands cupping her butt and pulling her forward. "We could keep at this for a while."

Beth nods and sits up, her legs falling to either side of his hips.

"Let your hair down?" he asks softly. She pulls at her hair tie and her hair falls to her shoulders. He reaches up and touches the ends of her hair so tenderly she thinks she might cry again.

Trying to keep the waterworks to a minimum, she says, "I have to admit, I'm not all that sure what to do."

"Did all right a few minutes ago," he says, his hands sliding from her hair to cup her breasts.

"Oh, that's nice," she says, her head falling back. "I just…oh, Lord, that feels real nice…what do I do?"

"You're a farm girl," he says as his hands move to cradle her hips. "You know how to ride."

She looks down at him, at the smirk on his face, and she grins.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Aah! Last chapter a part from the epilogue! Oh, y'all cannot know how much I have appreciated and treasured every single one of your reviews! Thank you from the bottom of my heart - Thank You! I hope you enjoy!

Beth wakes to the sensation of someone breathing against the back of her neck and an arm flung over her middle. She smiles and curls up against the warmth.

After a second go round that'd had Beth collapsing into breathless, blissed out laughter on Daryl's chest, they'd gotten dressed, eaten what they could find, and gotten some sleep with their weapons close by and the door barricaded.

Outstanding, mind-blowing sex notwithstanding, they are, after all, still living in a zombie apocalypse; and now that Beth knows what it feels like to have happiness right at her fingertips, she isn't about to let it get snatched away from her due to carelessness.

But she'll give herself these few moments of peace, where she can hear the birds outside and match her breathing to the man behind her.

As seems to be her wont these days, a snippet of a lecture from her science teacher floats through her mind.

_Fusion,_ he'd said, _is when things come together and energy is either created or expended._

_Well, I think we did a bit of both last night_ , she thinks holding in a giggle.

Lips press a kiss to the back of her neck and Daryl mumbles, "Better get up and get on the move."

"I know," she says running her hand over his forearm, feeling the cords of muscle under his skin, and wanting to start up round three. "Guess it'd be pretty selfish of us to stay here and just make love all day long."

"Damn selfish of us," he says against her skin before sucking a kiss at the juncture of her neck and shoulder.

Beth sighs and leans her head back to meet his lips. After a lovely few minutes of lazy kissing, he sighs and rolls to his back, propping his arm on his forehead.

"This can't be natural," he says, staring up at the ceiling. "You're some kind of witch, making me all lazy. Sun's up and I should be out doing something and I'm in here kissing you."

Beth grins. "Yeah, you seemed really upset about it a second ago."

He growls and lunges, rolling her underneath him. She giggles and threads her fingers through his hair.

"We gotta get up," he says, looking her in the eye.

"I know," she says softly.

He leans down and kisses her hard and then he's on his feet.

She makes a face and then gets up.

They pack up what they have, make sure their weapons are ready, and then slip out the front door. The day is sunny compared to the storm they'd had the day before and they walk carefully past all the debris on the ground. Beth can hear walkers somewhere in the distance, but they don't actually see any as they head out of town.

"Need a car," Daryl says eventually, "if we want to catch up to everyone. Keep an eye out for a garage or something."

Beth just nods. They go several blocks and are just about to the edge of town when Daryl spots a car dealership. It looks to have been looted at some point, but they go inside anyway, staying as silent as possible.

Daryl eyes the cars that are left and shakes his head. "That Honda'd probably do."

"Okay," Beth says, not really seeing the difference between one car and the other. They look around a bit more and Daryl opens the door to the garage in the back of the dealership.

"Now we're talking," he says with a grin, sauntering into the garage.

One of the garage doors is open and sunlight streams in. The dealership backs up to an open field and Beth can see the state highway in the distance. She also sees what's made Daryl so cheerful.

It's a Bonneville Triumph, all black and silver and looks to be in decent condition. Well, as far as Beth can tell. He walks up to the motorcycle and crouches down to check out the engine.

"Why someone hasn't grabbed you right up, I cannot say," he mutters, running his fingers over the metal. He frowns. "Needs some brake pads."

"Can you put those on?" she asks. She rolls her eyes at the look he gives. "Okay, okay! I didn't mean to insult your mechanical prowess."

"Show you prowess," he says under his breath as he brushes past her to look at the wall of the garage. He rummages through various boxes and bins and finds what he's looking for. He nods at the door. "Keep watch, all right?"

Beth nods and goes over to the door. She leans against the doorway and scans the area. Nothing appears to be stirring and she can see the damage the tornado wrecked on the town. An entire strip of houses looks to have been mowed down and several buildings are missing their roofs. She glances up at the sky and eyes the bright sun. A chill is in the air and she breathes in the crisp, fresh scent of fall.

Looking over at her shoulder, she sees Daryl on his back as he removes bits and pieces from the bike. He's taken off his vest and long-sleeved shirt leaving his arms bare. Beth watches the play of the muscles in his forearms and remembers clutching at said arms the night before. A flush builds in her cheeks and spreads throughout her body.

She stares for so long, it's only when he clears his throat that her eyes snap up to his face. He's got a knowing smirk on his face and she knows she's been caught out.

"See something you like, girl?" he asks sounding amused.

"Oh, hush. You're just a big, fat distraction, Mr. Dixon," she says turning away to look at the area.

He chuckles and goes back to work.

The sound of rasping breath makes Beth stand up straight, turn, and take aim. Two walkers stumble around the corner of the garage and spot her. They stretch their arms out and the rasping sound gets louder.

She fires an arrow and it hits one in the eye. The other one stumbles towards her a bit faster and she doesn't have time to reload, so she steps out of the doorway and swings the crossbow. It connects with the walker's head with a crunch. The walker falls to the ground. She eyes her crossbow and marvels at the strength of steel. She turns to see Daryl, propped up in the doorway, his own crossbow at the ready.

She raises her eyebrows at him and he lowers his bow.

"You, Miz Greene, are a big, fat distraction," he says to her, a corner of his mouth curved upwards.

Beth grins at him. "I sure am. Now back to work, Dixon."

He salutes her and goes back to the bike.

An hour later, after eating a can of fruit and a lone packet of beef jerky found in one of the desks inside the dealership, the bike is ready.

Daryl stands up and walks around it, looking it over. He holds his hands in the air and then nod, clapping silently just once. Beth hides a smile. She's seen him do that same move before, whenever he figures something out and makes it work.

"We good to go?" she asks.

"Yeah, yeah, I think so," he says. He gets on to the bike and after a brief hesitation, he starts it up.

The engine turns over and the rumble makes Beth sigh in relief.

"Boo yah," Daryl says loudly over the sound of the engine. He looks over at her and beckons her closer with a jerk of his head. "You ever ride before?"

"Depends on what you're referring to," she says thinking of the night before.

The man actually blushes and ducks his head. "Shut up. I mean, one of these?"

"Nope," she says, bouncing a little on her feet. "What do I do?"

"You get on and hold on tight," he says.

"I can do that," she says, putting her backpack on her back and adjusting the straps so that it rests tight on her back. She hands him his jacket and vest. Once he's ready, she eases herself onto the bike and scoots so that she's flush up against his back.

"Wrap those arms around me, baby," he says, putting his hand on her thigh and pulling her closer.

She hugs him from behind and she flashes back to that moment outside that old shack in the woods and she presses a quick kiss to his cheek.

"Let's go, Dixon," she says against his ear.

His answer is to let the brake off and they slowly drive out of the garage and around the dealership. It's slow-going getting out of town as they dodge the mess the tornado made, but soon they're on the highway and Daryl speeds up some.

They pass the spot where they'd stopped with the group before going into town and Daryl slows down to look at something on the side of the road.

Beth squeezes Daryl tight when she sees the sign in Maggie's handwriting that reads: _Beth and Daryl – Catch the last train to Clarkesville_. Beth feels her eyes sting with emotion and her chest feels tight.

_Thanks, Maggie_ , she thinks.

Daryl reaches back and squeezes her thigh and she nods happily. "Let's go."

There's still debris scattered across the roads and he never goes too fast but still, being on the motorcycle is like nothing Beth's ever felt before. It feels like freedom made tangible. The wind whips her hair around her face and the engine rumbles steadily underneath her.

They drive until the sun starts to set and then they look for somewhere to spend the night. Due to the mess on the roads, they haven't gotten as far as Daryl would have liked, but they're moving and that alone makes Beth content.

Daryl spots a small structure in a field and turns off the road towards it. It looks devoid of all life, including walkers and he rolls the motorcycle inside. It's more of a storage shed than a barn as it's not very big and has just enough space for the motorcycle. There are a few plastic tubs filled with feed for cows and some horse tack hanging on the walls. There's a small ledge with a ladder leading up to it. Beth climbs up and finds a musty horse blanket. She wrinkles her nose, but it's better than the rough, wood floor. She rolls it out and peers out the small window at the empty field.

They decide not to bother with a fire and just eat what they've got. Afterwards, they rig up the usual alarm system of empty cans, this time lined up just in front of the door to the shed. Daryl walks the perimeter of the field a few times.

When he comes back inside, he closes the door and sets to propping one of the tubs in front of it.

Beth shifts her weight from foot to foot and looks at him. "All clear?" she asks.

"Looks like," he says shoving the tub into place.

"Think we'll be safe here?"

"Safe enough."

Beth fidgets a little then asks, "Are you tired?"

He glances up at her and shakes his head. "Not especially. Why?"

She doesn't really know how to come right out and ask him for what she wants. Despite everything they did the night before, she feels downright shy. Beth looks down at the floor and then back up at him; which is when she sees it.

A small smirk has crept on to his face. A smirk which plainly states that he knows what she's dancing around about asking.

She glares and puts her hands on her hips and says, "Oh, shut up and get me naked, Daryl Dixon."

"Ma'am, yes ma'am," he says bending down and throwing her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. She shrieks quietly and smacks his butt but he just walks her over to the ladder and sets her down.

She scurries up the ladder as fast as she can and crawls onto the horse blanket, Daryl crawling up right behind her. His body covers her and the kiss he gives her makes her tingle all over.

Her hands pluck at his vest and jacket and while he tugs her own clothes off her as best he can without removing his mouth from hers.

She spreads his jacket down on top of the horse blanket and pulls him down to her. Like the night before, his hands travel all over her and his mouth follows his hands. He gives her a look that she can't quite read and watches as he moves down her body, pressing open-mouthed kisses as he goes.

He kisses her belly and her hip bones. When he shoulders himself between her thighs, she sits up to look at him and says, "What are you – oh."

His mouth moves over her and her head falls back to thud on the floor as her hands clutch at his hair.

" _Oh_."

Afterwards, once they've gotten dressed and crossbows are close to hand, Daryl sits up just under the window, so he can keep an eye on the field. Beth curls up against his chest and runs her fingers along his hands and arms.

"Hey, I, uh, want to stay like this with you," he says gruffly, catching her hand with his. "When we're with the others. Don't want to give this up. All right?"

"More than all right," she says smiling at their hands.

"Think anybody's going to mind?" he asks, interlacing their fingers together.

"I doubt it," she says. "Besides, you saved their bacon from, well, becoming bacon, so I don't think they're going to fuss too much." She snickers. "I mean, Glenn might want to have a chat, so be nice."

"I'm always nice," he says against her temple.

"Of course, you are," she says while nodding. "A veritable ray of sunshine."

"Smartass," he mutters holding her close.

Beth sighs in contentment and falls asleep in his arms. Naturally, when he wakes her for her turn at watch, she returns the favor and he curls up like a big ole cat, head resting in her lap.

The next morning dawns crisp and cool with a low-lying mist on the field. The dew on the high grass wets the bottoms of Beth's jeans and her boots as she watches Daryl roll the motorcycle out of the shed.

She looks over the shed and then looks behind her and spares a moment to marvel at how far she's come. Not just in terms of miles, but in terms of everything. She rests her hand on her crossbow where it hangs across her chest and breathes in the morning air.

"Hey," Daryl call to her. "You ready to find the others?"

Beth smiles. "Yeah, I am."

_There's power and safety in numbers_ , she thinks as she walks over to where he sits on the motorcycle, looking strong and steady and ready to go. _But this...us...this is good. This is better than good._

Daryl must know what she's thinking because he nods and reaches out his hand to her. She takes it and he presses a quick kiss to her palm. Beth grins as she eases onto the bike behind him.

He starts the engine and Beth holds tight to him as they take off down the highway.

The end.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Oh, my goodness, y’all. This is it. The end. I don’t know how to thank each and every one of you for the amazing reviews and cheerleading and support. Writing this story took me by complete surprise and I have enjoyed sharing it with you and I hope to be back with something else soon. 
> 
> Thank you, thank you, thank you! Fingers crossed for an awesome season five! Ugh! I can’t wait until October!

**Five years later…**

“Beth, Beth, Beth!”

“What, what, what?” Beth asks turning to see Judith running over to her, her three-year-old little sister, Andy, following close behind.

“Look what we found!” Judtih says holding out her cupped hands. 

Beth finishes pinning up a pair of Daryl’s pants on the clothes line beside her own jeans, then crouches down to see what Judith has found.

“Let’s see here, oh, wow, look at her,” Beth says when Judith very carefully un-cups her little hands to let Beth peek inside. 

A little bright red ladybug complete with perfect black spots crawls over the tiny folds in Judith’s palm.

“Andy found her,” Judith says breathlessly.

“I found her,” Andy says leaning against Beth’s side, her curly hair tickling Beth’s arm.

“Good job, both of you,” Beth says.

“Can we do the song?” Judith asks, her brown eyes wide as she looks up at Beth.

“Of course,” Beth says.  “Let’s do it by the bushes by the house.”

They walk over to the azalea bush that’s just starting to bloom next to Beth and Daryl’s cabin and they all kneel down.

“Ready,” Beth says, then they all say:

_Ladybug, ladybug fly away home,_

_Your house is on fire and your children are gone,_

_All except one,_

_And her name is Ann,_

_And she hid under the baking pan._

Judith opens her hand and the ladybug flies off to land on the azalea leaves.

“Perfect,” Beth says smiling.  “Now, weren’t you supposed to be reading with Carol?”

“She had to help Carl with one of the chickens,” Judith says.

“Chickens,” Andy says nodding.

“Ah, I see,” Beth says getting to her feet and holding out her hands Andy takes one and Judith takes the other.  “Well, let’s go see what big brother’s up to.”

They walk towards the edge of the small grouping of cabins they found close to four years back. 

Beth and Daryl found the rest of the group where they’d said they’d be, just on the edge of Clarkesville.  They found a big house that must have been a bed and breakfast and holed up inside for the winter.

When the worst of the winter weather was over, they decided to find some place they could live.  After several discussions, the majority of the group decided that they just wanted to live in as much peace as they could and the idea of heading to Washington, DC just didn’t seem wise.

Abraham hadn’t taken it very well.  When spring came in, he, Eugene, Rosita, and Tara headed north.

Beth was never sure why Tara decided to go.  She figured it was due to a lingering sense of guilt about the Governor.

Rick had wished them well and told them that if they ever wanted to come back, they’d be welcome.

They never saw Abraham or Eugene again. 

But Tara and Rosita showed up at the cabins a year and a half later.  It turns out, Eugene hadn’t been totally honest about having a cure to the virus and Abraham had been killed when they’d met up with a bad group of people.  They weren’t sure what happened to Eugene and had decided to just come back.

They set themselves up in the same cabin as Tyreese and Sasha and contributed daily to helping their little settlement keep on running.

After Clarkesville, they’d all headed towards the Chattahoochee National Forest.  On a run, Sasha had found a bunch of brochures for holiday cabins near the forest.  Advertised as ‘rustic’ and ‘a chance to get back to nature’, they decided to check them out.  Namely because they were off the main highways and the cabins looked to come with wood stoves, as well as being near a stream.

Unfortunately, other folks had had the same idea, so when they arrived, there were quite a few walkers and bodies to deal with.  But after that, the amount of walkers they dealt with on a regular basis seemed to dwindle.

Not that they didn’t take precautions.  Night watches were still adhered to and they’d created a perimeter of alarm systems and a few traps.  After all, it wasn’t just walkers they had to deal with.  But being off the main roads had limited their interaction with other people quite a bit.

Rick had immediately set up another vegetable garden and everyone pitched in.  Daryl ransacked a library on a run and brought back every book he could find on how to live off the land.

Carl got really interested in raising chickens and after a few setbacks (foxes and a weird fungus), there was a good-sized hen house and eggs almost every day.

Beth and Carol made it their mission in life to figure out how to preserve and can food for the winter and this last winter they had a very good store.

Daryl taught Glenn how to hunt and the two of them would go into the forest and come back with all manner of game, usually venison, quail, and rabbit.  Daryl had taken it upon himself to learn how to make jerky and while his first attempt was beyond disgusting, the next several were more than decent.

As Beth walks with Judith and Andy, she passes Tyreese and Bob who are still trying to get the generator they found up and running. 

They give her a smile and a nod and Tyreese calls, “They show you their ladybug?”

“Sure did,” Beth says.  “We sent her on her way.”

“Her house was on fire!” Judith says cheerfully.

Bob chuckles and shakes his head while Tyreese grins.

They round the corner, heading towards the chicken coop, and Andy lets go of Beth’s hand, calling out, “Mama!”

She dashes off as fast as her little legs can go and Michonne smiles wide as she scoops Andy up into her arms.

“Hey there, baby,” Michonne says pressing her cheek to Andy’s.

Beth smiles as Judith also runs over to Michonne and wraps her arms around one of her legs and grins up at her.

Michonne looks up and grins at Beth.  “I heard there was a ladybug?”

“It had to be dealt with,” Beth says mock-seriously and nodding.

Michonne chuckles and hitches Andy up further on her hip.

Out of all the little dramas and incidences the group had seen after they’d reunited, little Andy was the biggest surprise.

Everyone knew that Rick and Michonne were close, but one night after a bad run involving walkers, they’d gotten even closer.

Apparently, sometimes all it took was the one time.  Michonne realized she was pregnant two months later and just left the settlement.  On her own.

Carl was angry at Rick, Rick was angry at himself, and everyone felt beyond helpless to do anything.

Finally, it took Carol cornering Rick and saying, “Rick Grimes, man up and go find that woman and bring her back.  I don’t care what you have to do, but you bring her back here.  She is not going through this alone.”

Rick went after Michonne.

Three days later, they came back.  Seven months later, little Andrea, with the biggest brown eyes and the curliest dark brown hair, was born.

“They aren’t back yet?” Beth asks as they walk towards the cabin Michonne and Andy share with Carol.  While Rick was involved heavily with Andy and taking care of her, he and Michonne hadn’t gotten together since that one night.  Although lately, Beth thought she’d noticed a few looks back and forth between the pair of them. 

“Not yet,” Michonne says glancing at Beth with a smile.  “But they will.  He’ll be back soon.”

“I know,” she says taking Judith’s hand again.  “Just…you know.”

“Worried?”

“Something like that.”

“It’s just a quick one to see if the place is worth looking at,” Michonne says.  “They’ll be back.”

“I know,” Beth nods.  Rick, Glenn, and Daryl had headed out two days before to take a look at a town a few hours away.  Some of their tools were wearing down and Daryl wanted to find some spare parts for the trucks and the motorcycle.

They hadn’t bothered going too far away from the camp, but Rick had figured it’d be a good idea to see what the world was looking like these days.

Daryl had agreed.

Beth had, too, but it was the first time he’d been so far from her and it made her chest ache.

Beth takes a deep breath and looks around the area that they’d claimed and made theirs.  Clothes hang on clotheslines, chickens cluck happily in their pen.  Beth can hear Maggie cutting up firewood near her and Glenn’s cabin while Tara and Rosita are tilling the gardens and weeding.

They head inside Michonne and Carol’s cabin and get the girls something to drink.

Carol comes back in, covered in feathers and just shakes her head.  “Chickens’re fine.  Just ornery.”

“Ornery!” Andy says happily.

Beth grins and says, “On that note, I’m going to go back to my washing.  I’ll get started on cleaning the jars, too, for the preserves.”

“I’ll come by later,” Carol says, referring to their canning endeavor.

Beth gives Andy and Judith kisses on their cheeks and then heads back to her cabin.

Their cabin.

No one said a word when Beth and Daryl joined back up with the group and had taken a room for themselves.  It had just been accepted as something that just was.

And things had been good. 

Real good.

Not that they hadn’t had their share of fights and misunderstandings.  Usually when that happened, Daryl would slip off into the forest, find something to kill, and bring it back; while Beth would clean everything in sight at least three times over or start knitting.

Then when they’d see each other again, they’d stare at each other awkwardly, then fall immediately into bed, and work it out under the covers. 

They just _got_ each other.  More than either of them had really expected.

Beth sighs as she hangs up the rest of the clothes, then goes inside to check on the bit pot of vegetable soup she plans on canning later.  She’s busy stirring it and getting the glass jars clean when she hears an engine approaching.

She quickly puts the lid back on the soup and removes it from the heat, then dashes outside.

They’d chosen the cabin closest to the back and the forest, so by the time Beth gets to where they park the trucks, everyone’s already there.

Rick is swinging Judith in the air, followed by a swing for Andy, and clasp on the shoulder for Carl.  Bob and Glenn are pulling tools and parts out of the bed.  Beth looks around and then she spots him.

He and Tyreese are pulling what looks like a chassis off the truck for one of the other trucks.  His muscles are flexing as he lifts it and Beth feels that long-familiar simmering start under her skin.

Daryl sets the chassis down carefully and says something to Tyreese, who nods.  Then Daryl looks straight over and meets Beth’s eyes.  The corner of his mouth curves up and Beth smiles at him.

“See you later, man,” Daryl says to Tyreese, clapping him on the shoulder.

Daryl nods at Rick and Glenn, gives a quick tweak of a curl to Andy, nods to Carol and Maggie, and then he’s right in front of her.

“Hey,” she says looking up at him and smiling brightly.

“Hey, yourself,” he says, brushing the backs of his fingers quickly on her cheek.

“You look like you could use a wash,” she says.  “I’ve got some water back at the cabin.”

“Yeah, all right.”  They head away from the others and Beth ignores Carl’s snickering and the knowing glances she is positive everyone’s giving each another.

“How is it out there?” she asks as they walk.

“Pretty quiet,” he says.  “It’s getting warmer, so the walkers are perking up again.  Didn’t see anyone, though.”

Beth nods.  “I’ve got soup for dinner.  I’m canning the rest of it, though.”

“Sounds good,” he says as they head up the steps to their cabin.

Beth is barely inside before the door slams shut and she’s pinned against it, Daryl kissing her madly.  His mouth rough and hot on hers, his body hard and pressed tight up against her.

Not that she minds.

And certainly not that she doesn’t retaliate by threading her hands into his hair and hitching her leg on his hip.

He curls his hands under her thighs and hoists her up, pressing his hips and rocking against her.

“Oh, God, I missed you,” Beth gasps as he slides a hand up and palms her breast.  “Take me to bed, Dixon.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he says roughly after sucking a hickey onto her collarbone.  She winds her arms around his shoulders and her legs wrap around his waist and he carries her into the bedroom.

Later on they lay in bed, his head on her stomach, while she runs her fingers through his hair.  There’s a bit more gray in it than there was when she first knew him, but she’s got more lines on her face now and her hands are a patchwork of calluses and scars from just existing in this world.

He sighs in contentment and curls his arms around her tighter.

“Best feeling I’ve had in days,” he says, his breath warm on her bare skin.

“What?  Rick and Glenn don’t like to cuddle?” she asks.

“Nah,” he says.  “And they don’t smell half as good as you do.”

“High praise, indeed,” she says grinning.  She bites her lip.  “I think Maggie’s pregnant.”

He stills.  “You sure?”

“She’s late,” she says. 

“Glenn know?”

“She was going to tell him when y’all got back,” she says.  “I don’t know if she’s happy or nervous.  Maybe both.”

“Hope things go all right for them,” he says nuzzling at her stomach.

“Me, too.”  Beth closes her eyes and listens to the sound of her heart beating, Daryl breathing, and the sounds of the forest around them.

“You want one?” Daryl’s voice cuts into her doze.

“Hmm?” she asks, lazily opening her eyes.

He lifts his head and looks at her.  “Do you want one?  A baby.  With me.”

Beth blinks at him and smiles.  “You are the only person on this earth I would ever want a baby with.  Do you want one?”

He shrugs.  “Don’t know.  Doesn’t always seem like a safe thing to do these days.”

“True,” Beth says, sliding down so that she’s underneath Daryl, his face above hers.  “I’m not sure, if I’m honest.  So many things can go wrong.”

He nods.  Then he leans down and kisses her gently, slowly, practically sipping at her mouth and making her blood simmer and soon she’s lightheaded and her body’s rocking gently beneath him.

Eventually, he pulls back and says, “I’d be okay with it, if it happens.  But I just…”  He hesitates and presses his forehead to hers.  “I’m good with it just being us, too.”

“Daryl Dixon,” she breathes.  “You are fundamental to my existence now and I’m _so_ good with it being just us, too.”

He leans back down and kisses her again, which leads to other things, which leads to a brief nap, with the windows open, the spring air wafting in and stirring the curtains.

Then they’ll get up and Beth will check on the soup and Daryl will get to cleaning the parts they brought back and everyone will eat dinner together.  And then later, they’ll wind up back in bed and he’ll wrap his arms around her and it’ll just be good.  Just them.  Together.

**The End.**


End file.
